Acceptance
by Iris Butterfly
Summary: Riku, a younger sister of the twins, was twice broken: first by her brothers, and then three years ago. A part of her wanted to remain broken and die, but a part of wanted to continue living and to tango with death. Will the twins let her destroy herself?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Note:** This is inspired by the song 'Secret Base' and some other songs that I've been listening to lately. The title is inspired by the song 'Heart of Glass' by U (Shirota Yu). Many thanks to Tsuki-chan for helping me with this.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

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><p><span>Chapter 1:<span>

_"The end of the summer with you, our dreams for the future,  
>Our grand hopes – I won't ever forget them.<br>In this month of August ten years later,  
>I believe that we can meet again.<br>My best memories…"_

I closed my eyes as I leaned against the plush seat of the limousine. It felt awkward that I was finally going to live with my mother and my brothers; after all, it had been nearly ten years since I've last seen them. Suddenly, I realized how the song I'm listening to really relates to me… at least I think it does.

_"The moment when we first met… at the intersection on the way home,  
>You raised your voice and said, "Let's go home together."<br>I was shy, and while I hid my behind my bag,  
>In truth, I was so, so happy."<em>

I did not know how long I was tuned out because when I reopened my eyes, I realized that the song had already finished. To be truthful, I was afraid to come back here… not because I did not want to meet my mother again, because I do. But I was a stranger to my brothers; even when we were younger, I was a stranger to them. I did not exist in their world even though I am their sister.

'I'm only doing this because Dad forced me to,' I repeated that statement in my mind as if it was mantra. I clenched the hem of my skort until the material wrinkled, and quickly shook away the tears forming at the corner of my eyes.

When Dad said that he was going to Europe to expand his computer software business, I jumped at the chance to go with him knowing that my brothers wanted me out of their hair, as depressing as that sounded. Even though I was young at the time, I clearly remembered their bullying, and harsh remarks. It hurt a lot, especially when it came from my own family.

I quickly shook my head to steer clear away from the oncoming depressing thoughts, and refocused my attention on the next song my music player was playing.

_"(Hey! What's up baby)  
>A late night phone call<br>I can hear you are crying  
>I'm on my way over there now, alright.<br>I'm still on the phone with you  
>While going to the convenience store for you, my girlfriend.<em>

_You know what I can tell you now  
>You're not alone, you do understand right?<br>It's a bit bothersome, but you're my best friend, and we'll get through it together."_

I let out a bittersweet smile at the lyric as the limousine pulled up to a large mansion. Even with just seeing the home I had left ten years ago, I am already overwhelmed with nervousness – the butterflies in the stomach, the echoing heart beats… it was all present. I was nervous, and I know it.

I could barely hear the next verse to the song I was listening to what with my heart thundering in my chest to the point that it almost became heard for me to breathe. I did not know whether or not I will be accepted again since I left; I do know that Dad has kept in contact with Mom nearly every day, occasionally asking about my brothers, and telling her about what I have been doing and such. Besides, Mom always managed to find time to visit us whenever she was traveling around Europe for her fashion shows. Me, on the other hand, I did not bother since I knew that I would be isolated by my brothers again, and as much as it pained me to say this, talking to Mom reminded me of them… and I did not like being reminded of what had happened that day.

"Miss Hitachiin, we have arrived," the chauffeur informed me after he opened the limousine door for me.

I mentally let out a deep sigh as I turned off my music player, and pocketed the item in my black trench coat. The song I was just listening to seconds ago was repeating in my mind, especially the phrases 'I'm by your side', and 'It's okay to cry, it'll make you stronger'. Even if these were only pretenses, I felt a bit better because I knew that I would never hear such things from anyone else.

"_You know what I can tell you now. You're not alone anymore… you do understand that, right?"_ I sang quietly under my breath in Japanese as I walked up the steps to the front door.

I got more nervous with each step I took, and I quietly continued singing under my breath while I shifted my thoughts to something more positive thoughts. Something like…I don't know, how surprised they would look at my appearance? After all, it _has_ been a decade since they have seen me. But then again, that wasn't a good shift in thoughts because it only reminded me of my nervousness… of that day when I was in that enclosed space…

"Riku! You're here!" My thoughts interrupted when I was suddenly engulfed in a tight hug by my mother, who appeared out of nowhere. Despite the fact that I stiffened at the unexpected hug, I almost let out a smile at the sudden interruption that I was glad for. I did not want to think about that incident again.

I immediately told myself to calm down as I awkwardly patted her back, and from behind her, I noticed an identical twins looking at me with bored expressions on their face. They were my brothers. I immediately tore my gaze away, and was brought back to reality when Mom pulled away from the hug before she began looking at me up and down, almost as if she was judging me.

"You look just like me when I was your age, dear," she stated as she began inspecting me like the fashion designer she is. I immediately sighed mentally as I waited for her to finish.

Dad constantly reminded me of Mom's profession and that I am a Hitachiin, as such, I was to dress fashionably at all times. It was drilled into my mind since I was born. I just hope that I looked somewhat presentable in my white blouse, a black tie loosely hung around my neck, a black skort, a black trench coat that reached to my knees, and a pair of knee-high stiletto boots. This was my school uniform since I did not have enough time to change before I was shipped here… In short, I was still in my school uniform.

"It's good to finally have you back, Riku," Mom stated with a gentle smile on her face as she pulled me into a hug once more. "You remember your brothers, right?"

She did not give me a chance to say anything since she dragged me towards my older brothers, who were still standing by the stairway with the same bored expressions. They had grown taller, and judging by their appearances, I could easily say that they are popular at their school. However, this information was quite irrelevant because I could hear my thundering heart echoing in my ears when their scrutinizing gazes landed on me. I unconsciously felt as if I was being swallowed by a tidal wave of nervousness with no one to rescue me… In a nutshell, I felt as if I was drowning.

'I shouldn't have thought that. Now, I feel nauseous,' I commented in my mind as I willed myself not to think about tidal waves, drowning, and whatnot.

"Hikaru, Kaoru, you remember your little sister, Riku, right?" my mom remarked as she glanced at the three of us. It seemed she was oblivious to the tension between us.

"Hi," I mumbled, quite unsure what to say.

"You know, I don't know why you bothered to come back," Hikaru stated scathingly as he glared at me. If I were to say it dramatically, I felt as if I had been pushed off a cliff, and landed on the rocky surfaces below. "We don't need you, we never did," he continued with a sneer.

"Kaoru! How can you say such a thing to your sister?" Mom shrieked.

She had said the wrong name, but I did not bother to correct her since I was busy biting the bottom of my lips to stop myself from crying in front of them. I did not want to appear affected by words, despite knowing that it was indeed affecting me internally.

"I'm Hikaru!" he retorted with a yell before he directed his glare onto me. I visibly flinched even though I was telling myself not to, and then he said, "Damn it! I wish you were never born!"

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><p>Yuzuha took a sharp intake when she heard one of her sons spoke such harsh words towards her daughter. Before she realized it, a loud slap echoed through the mansion. It was then that she had slapped Hikaru, and judging by the surprised look on his face, she knew that he was shocked but at the same time, he should realize that he deserved it.<p>

"Don't you _ever_ say something like that again," Yuzuha hissed angrily as she glared at him, and added, "Riku is a part of our family."

She then directed her attention to her daughter, who had her head bowed and her bangs covering her eyes. "Honey…" she started while she approached to the younger girl.

Riku, on the other hand, shied away from her mother's advances and took a step back. "Sorry," she murmured without looking at anyone directly in the eyes and turned around to walk out of the door. However, she paused by the doorway for a moment and said, "You know, sometimes I wish I had died that day," in a low monotonous whisper before she walked away.

"That was out of the line, and you know it. I hope you two are planning to apologize to her," that was all Yuzuha said before she left the foyer.

The twins stared at the empty spot where Riku stood minutes earlier, and finally, Hikaru turned around and headed upstairs. Kaoru shortly followed with a small frown on his face; he had seen the tears trailing down her face when she walked away from them. He knew Hikaru had gone overboard this time, especially when he saw how hurt Riku looked when his brother said those things.

"Hikaru…" Kaoru began with a frown as he followed his brother to their bedroom.

"I'm not apologizing, Kaoru," the other twin responded as he opened the bedroom door, and then entered into their room.

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><p>I finally stopped walking when I realized that I came to a dead end. I glanced around my surrounding, noticing that mom's house was in the far distance, and that I was in a maze. I only said 'mom's house' because I knew that I was not welcomed in that house, and that I only came to Japan since my dad wanted me to stop endangering myself at Imperial Cavalier Academy. He found out what that Academy does, and my role in the frontline. To say that he was shocked and surprised would be an understatement of the year, because he immediately contacted my mom and told her that I would be living with her for the time being… which, knowing my dad, would be until I graduate high school at the very least.<p>

"I wish he would just let me be so I would not be here," I muttered with a frown.

I shook my head, trying not to think in that direction, and made my way to a small bench that was conveniently built near the tall hedges. I took off my trench coat and proceeded to fold it to make a make-shift pillow. I then lay down on the small bench before I shifted my gaze to the sky above, staring at nothing in particular.

"I don't want to be here…" I trailed off as I folded my arms over my chest.

I did not tell anyone that the only reason I was in Imperial Cavalier Academy was so that I would be able to end my life in a mission. I had tried to end it myself, but something, whether it would be my conscious, or at times, someone had always managed to stop me. The most I had done was stand on top of the roof of buildings, but I never had the courage to jump; and then there were times when I held my butterfly knife against my neck, but I did not have the courage to stab myself. My rational side of conscious was always telling me to live and survive, even though I had long ago given up on such things.

It was not the first time I had such thoughts, and I usually keep these thoughts to myself so that I would not trouble Dad with my suicidal self. I could not help but think that the only reason I am keeping myself alive was because I wanted to see who would save me before I reached to the point of no return. A part of me wanted to see who actually cared about me… yet, a part of me wanted to disappear altogether. It was very conflicting.

I let out a deep sigh and stared at the clouds slowly gliding across the sky as I listened to birds chirping nearby. I had a feeling that I would be thinking such thoughts whenever I am left alone, it was inevitable; yet at the same time, I like being alone… simply because I can go back to the days when we were all one happy family.

"I know that what's broken twice can't be repaired again, but I can hope… can't I?" I said to no one in particular as my mouth twitched to a small smile. I did not know the reason for my smile, but I was somewhat thankful that my Dad cared… even if he did not know that he had saved me before I managed to successfully kill myself at one of those missions.

**x0x0x0x**

When I reopened my eyes, it was already in the evening… presumably around six or seven o'clock judging the orange streaks in the sky. I let out a groan as I sat up, wincing at how my back ached, and made a mental note not to fall asleep on this uncomfortable bench ever again. A yawn escaped from my mouth as I grabbed my trench coat, flapping it a couple of times to get the wrinkle out – not that it worked – before I adorned it.

I pulled out my music player from my pocket, flipping through my playlist for a few seconds before I settled on a song. I put on my earphones and pressed 'play' as I began with my half-hearted mission to get out of this maze.

_"What you left for me at the very end  
>Is still here inside me, unfading.<br>I'll catch the wind and fly away,  
>Bursting out of the darkness and towards a new world."<em>

I sang along with the music as I made another left turn, and paused in my mid stride when I heard birds communicating with one another while they flew overhead. I stood in that spot and watched them for some minutes, only coming to realization that the song I was listening to had finished and that I was nowhere near the exit.

"Come on, Riku," I muttered to myself as I forced myself to walk again to continue with this journey. "You were an S-Ranked detective; a maze or two won't stop you," the rational side of me stated as I came to another bench.

'But maybe I did not want to be found,' I responded in my mind as I stood on top of the bench. I knew that my actions contradicted what I was saying; but I did not want to stop tangoing with death just yet.

I let out a sigh as I got off the bench, just as another yawn escaped from my mouth. Perhaps, I should nap for a minute or twenty before I continue trying to find an exit.

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><p><strong>Songs Used: <strong>

_Secret Base_ by Zone

_Flavor Favor for You_ by Yamashita Tomohisa

_Shi Ru Be_ by Kimeru


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

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><p><span>Chapter 2: <span>

When I reopened my eyes, the first thing I noticed was that I was staring at the ivory colored ceiling; secondly, I realized that I was lying on a queen-sized bed. I immediately sat up and held my head, massaging it in small circles when I sat up too fast. I noticed that I was wearing a pale pink nightgown; this then led me to wonder who had changed my attire. Lastly, I inwardly questioned who had brought me here.

I sat on the bed, staring at nothing in particular, as I tried to remember how I ended up in this bedroom. I did not know how long I was sitting there, but when the bedroom door opened, I jumped in startled.

I watched as my mother walked into the room, dressed in one of her fashionable business attires, silently questioning why she was in the room. "Ah, Riku, good morning," she greeted with a smile.

"…Morning," I responded in a low tone since I did not know what to say even though I had so many things I wanted an answer to. It was almost as if I had lost an ability to speak, as strange as that sounded.

"The maids have already unpacked your belongings and have put them in your closet," Mom commented as she gestured to the walk-in closet on her left, but directly across from where I was at. "Why don't you go refresh up, and I'll see you in the dining room for breakfast? You can ask one of the maids if you don't know where that is," she added with a smile.

I merely nodded in response before she left the room and closed the doors behind her. I let out a quiet sigh yet again as I slowly got out of bed, and trudged towards the walk-in closet, grabbing some articles of clothes from the rack, before I made my way to an adjacent bathroom.

I stood by the doorway in awe as I stared at the luxurious bathroom, noting in the back of my mind about the heated flooring to the Jacuzzi bathtub to the flat-screen television hanging on the wall near the shower stall. A smile made its way on my face for a moment as I imagined how it would be to taint this luxurious scene in red.

'No, don't do it,' my rational side interjected as I shook my head to snap out of such thoughts.

I ran a hand through my auburn hair as I placed my clothes on a vanity counter before I went into the shower stall to adjust the water temperature. Once I was satisfied with the temperature, I stepped back out to slip out of my nightgown before I went back inside the large shower stall.

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><p>It had been nearly an hour since his mother went upstairs to checkup on Riku. Kaoru let out a frown when he noted that his younger sibling has yet to come down for breakfast. He also noted that she did not come for dinner last night either, and add to the fact that he did not know when she had last eaten, he was worried. He knew that Hikaru was also slightly worried, even though his older twin did not show it on his expression; after all, they are twins… he knew these kinds of things.<p>

What he does not understand was why Hikaru disliked their only sister. He knew that he and Hikaru are twins, and as such, their bond is stronger than most siblings; but that does not mean that they should exclude Riku just because she's not a part of their 'group'. Besides, he knew that their mother had wanted a daughter for the longest time, and that was the main reason Riku got most of their attention when they were young. He hated Riku for it; but he did not withhold a grudge like Hikaru because in the end, she is still their sister.

"Riku is late," Yuzuha muttered as she sipped on her cup of coffee. She then summoned a maid nearby, and instructed, "Can you go check on my daughter, and summon her here?"

"Of course, Madam," the maid responded with a bow before she left to do the task.

"Maybe she drowned in the bathtub," Hikaru muttered with a scoff as he stirred his coffee.

Yuzuha shot a glare towards her oldest child, and responded sharply, "Hikaru, how can you say that to your only sister? Do you dislike her that much?"

"I'm not –!" Hikaru yelled but stopped himself when he realized that his mother got his name correctly and did not mistake him with his twin. "…You got my name right," he commented in awe.

"Mind telling me why you dislike Riku?" Yuzuha asked with a frown on her face, waving away her son's comment, and added in a low tone, "Where did I go wrong?"

Hikaru glanced at his twin before he responded in quietly, "That's because you didn't mistake her with anybody else like you did with us. Besides, you're always giving her more attention then you did with us when we were younger. And when you do give us attention, it's always to scold us."

"I'm sorry," Yuzuha stated with a resigned sigh as she placed her coffee cup down on its saucer. "I didn't know I was doing that to you two. You know I always wanted a daughter so I can dress her up; but that plan didn't go as I would've liked," she added while she shook her head in dismay.

"What do you mean?" Kaoru asked curiously as he raised an eyebrow. "From what I noticed yesterday, Riku is somewhat fashionable even though what she wore yesterday wasn't designer label."

Yuzuha nodded in agreement as she traced her fingers around the rim of her coffee cup, and said, "It's not my place to say; but the Riku I met three years ago and the Riku I met yesterday is different."

Kaoru blinked in confusion at his mother's response as he shared a glance with his twin, and then responded with, "Mom, if it's been three years then it wouldn't be strange if she has changed."

Riku walked into the room before his mother had a chance to say anything. She flicked a glance towards their general direction as she walked towards a maid, whispering in hushed tone, and then sat down a seat diagonally away from him and Hikaru.

"Sorry mom, I sort of dozed off after shower," she muttered with a small apologetic smile towards Yuzuha.

Kaoru frowned when he noted how she ignored him and Hikaru. However, he did not blame her since he had a feeling how hurt she must have been by Hikaru's remark. He then eyed at her attire, a yellow and white lace-panel tank top, a pair of dark denim jeans with corsage-accented stuffed slim belt, and a pair of ivory-colored platform sandals. In other words, it was simple yet stylish to some degrees.

He glanced at his twin worriedly when he saw how Riku's face was void of any emotion. It was as if she was shutting herself away from the world. He almost let out a smile when he noticed Hikaru's slight worry expression as well.

'At least he still cares about her,' Kaoru mentally noted.

"Sweetie, I want to tell you that you'll be attending Ouran Academy starting Monday," Yuzuha stated as her gaze focused on Riku, who simply nodded in understanding. "Based on your grades, the Chairman said that you will be placed in the same class as your brothers."

In that instance, Riku's golden amber eyes flickered towards him and Hikaru. He nearly shivered when he noticed the coldness in her eyes… it was as if she had forgone on life; however, he was unsure of what he had seen since he only saw that expression for a couple of seconds.

"I understand," she directed that statement to Yuzuha, and then shifted her attention back to them. "Don't worry; I'll stay out of your way."

"Good, and make sure you don't come near us at school," Hikaru retorted with a scowl. He did not even spare a glance towards her as his attention was focused on his breakfast.

Riku did not say anything in response as a maid arrived with her breakfast, a bowl of rice, a couple of fried fish, and a bowl of soup. In fact, Kaoru noticed that she did not speak for the rest of her meal, and he briefly wondered why his mother was still sitting there, sipping on her cup of coffee as if she had all the time in the world.

"Mom, what are you still doing here? I thought you have a meeting to go to," Hikaru spoke after a while as he spared a glance towards to Yuzuha.

"I will in a bit," she responded with a small smile and then took another long sip of her coffee. Yuzuha then released a deep sigh and shifted her attention towards Riku to say, "Honey, one of the maids found something alarming that she brought to my attention yesterday."

Riku, on the other hand, merely paused in mid-action of wiping her mouth with a napkin, and raised an eyebrow as if she was indicating Yuzuha to continue.

Kaoru looked over to his twin with confusion written on his face before he turned to his mother questioningly, "What is it, Mom?"

Yuzuha did not say anything for a moment as she pulled out a small package from her purse, and placed it on the table. "Riku," she began in a careful tone, almost as if she treading cautiously, "Why do you have these anti-depressant pills?"

His eyes immediately widened in surprise and shock as he looked over to his sister. Kaoru silently noted that Riku did not look like someone who was depressed, but then again, he knew that he does not know her enough to know what was going in her mind.

"Anti-depressants?" Kaoru heard his twin whispered in astonished.

"Since when?" Yuzuha continued when she did not receive a response to her earlier question.

Riku placed the napkin on the table and slightly leaned back against her seat, her eyes closed for a moment as if she was trying to remember something. "On and off for three years now," she finally answered in a void tone as she reached over the table, and grabbed the package. "It all started four months after you visited," she added as an afterthought.

"What happened?" Kaoru could not help ask, and nearly flinched when he saw his sister's cold gaze.

Riku did not say anything for a moment, almost as if she was contemplating whether or not to tell them. "What's broken twice cannot be fixed so easily," she responded in a blank tone, and grabbed a glass of milk tea that a maid had placed before her.

"Kazu never mentioned this to me," Yuzuha murmured in a low tone with a frown on her expression.

"That's because Dad doesn't know," his sister responded before she took a long sip of her milk tea, and continued, "He's usually busy with his work, and I lived in a dorm."

"Riku…" It was the first time in a long while since Kaoru had saw his mother's dejected expression.

"Look, it's not that big of a deal, Mom," Riku interjected with a sigh as she placed her cup on the table, and gave Yuzuha a pointed look. "So don't go blaming yourself for this. Besides, it's not like I'm going to attempt suicide or whatever just because I'm taking anti-depressants."

Kaoru looked over to his twin for a moment before he shifted his attention to his sister, and said in a quiet tone, "Is it because of us?"

Hikaru gave him a startled look as if he was surprised by the question, but he did not say anything.

Riku merely gave a mysterious smile, and did not say anything in response.

* * *

><p>I can't believe that Mom already found out about the fact that I'm taking anti-depressants… not that I bothered to hide it since I had put it in the front compartment of my luggage. Still, that was a careless mistake on my part. I inwardly sighed when I saw Kaoru-nii's surprised and shocked look; it was as if he was trying to gauge for my character, trying to understand the reason why.<p>

"Anti-depressants?" I heard Hikaru-nii whispered in an equally shocked tone.

I noticed that his eyes were widen in surprised, and in that instance, he looked regretful for something I could not place. However, that expression disappeared before I could ponder on the reason. Not that I really care… after all, he disliked and loathed my very existence since I was born.

"Since when?" my mom asked instead since I did not answer to her inquiry about why I had anti-depressant pills.

I pursed my lips for a bit as I put the napkins back on the table, an attempt to stall for time, and slightly leaned back against my seat. I closed my eyes for a moment to block off the curious gazes from my family, silently debating whether I should tell them the truth or not.

In the end, I decided to go with the truth and said, "On and off for three years," as I leaned over to grab the small package. I stared at the name of the package, eyeing at the small writing of '100mg' underneath that name, and murmured, "It all started four months after you visited."

'And the three days of hell began,' my mind echoed despondently.

When Kaoru-nii had asked, "What happened?" I merely shifted my gaze onto him, and did not say anything in response. Why would he ask so casually about something I did not want to discuss… something I was willing myself to forget?

'Maybe it's because they don't know,' my mind supplied.

"What's broken twice cannot be fixed so easily," I repeated what I had said to myself yesterday as I grabbed a cup of milk tea to distract myself from the mental onslaught of those torturous three days of hell.

"Kazu never mentioned this to me," Mom stated in a low tone with her brows knitted furrow and a frown appearing on her face.

I paused for a second to stop myself from letting out a dry chuckle at her expression. "That's because Dad doesn't know," I responded and then took a long sip of my drink, fully aware of the fact that they were eyeing at my every action. "He's usually busy with his work, and I lived in a dorm," I supplied.

I did not mention the fact that I was diagnosed by the Academy's psychiatrist after I was rescued from that hell. Originally, these anti-depressant pills were to help me with my post-traumatic stress disorder; but I had also found out that it worked well for my depression as well. I presumed that my psychiatrist also know about what was truly going on with me based on our sessions, and prescribed it to me. I was thankful for the fact that she did not mention where my true problem lied, mainly because I did not want to relive the incident by talking about it, and that she did not protest much when I asked for an increase in dosage.

"Riku…" my mom trailed off.

"Look, it's not that big of a deal, Mom," I interrupted with a sigh as I placed my cup on the table, and gave her a pointed look. "So don't go blaming yourself for this. Besides, it's not like I'm going to attempt suicide or whatever just because I'm taking anti-depressants."

It was a lie; but they did not know that. After all, I had made several attempts to commit suicide, and I nearly laughed out loud at each of those failed attempts. One of the most memorable ones was a week before I came here; it was right after my dad had announced that he is going to send me to live with Mom and my brothers.

I could have sworn that I distinctly heard a quiet, "Is it because of us?" from across the table; however, I did not say anything as a smile appeared on my face when I remember how ridiculous I was when I made my way to the top of London Eye.

I had planned to jump of its 135 meters structure, and I was prepared to either drown in a river nearby or be smashed against the concrete… which ever direction I landed in. That would have been a sight for everyone to see. As dramatic as how my ending would have been, I did not have the courage to jump… if how I was clinging onto one of the support beams was anything to go by.

Really, I wanted to laugh at how pathetic I was… I wanted to laugh at how much I desired to die, and how much I desired to live at the same time.

I internally shook my head to bring myself back to the present, and noticed the solemn expressions on my mother and my brothers. I had a feeling that they were thinking about what I had just said; and as much as I would have liked to say that I was finally glad that my brothers were bothered by the news, it was irksome. It showed that they cared when they truly did not, if what Hikaru-nii said yesterday was anything to go by.

"I don't know when your meeting is, Mom, but is it okay for you to still be here?" I broke the silence in a calm tone, inwardly controlling my expression so that I came off as calm as my tone indicated.

"Ah! I'm going to be late!" Mom cried out as she finished her coffee in one quick sip. I watched in mild amusement as my mom gathered her jacket and her briefcase, telling a maid to call for the limousine, and then shifted her attention back to me. "Your school pamphlet is in my Study, you can ask one of your brothers or a maid to show you where that is. I promise we'll talk more about this more when I get back, alright? I don't want you to commit suicide."

"Don't worry; I don't plan to," I responded as convincingly as I could with a smile with a wave towards her retreating figure. I did not have the heart to tell her that I thought of death all the times; besides, she did not need to know something that could potentially break her.

"Love you guys!" Mom called out before she completely walked out of the room.

I let out a sigh as I pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to think what I am going to do for the rest of the day. When I was still in Imperial Cavalier Academy, I took on missions to distract myself from thinking about those dark memories of the past… well, it also disguised as means to end myself; but I was not going to tell anyone about the latter. However, since I was pulled out from the Academy and shipped here… how am I going to distract myself?

'You could go sightseeing. It has been ten years since you were here, and surely, many things might have changed since then,' my rational side whispered.

That did not seem like a bad idea, even though my mom forgot to leave me with any money to spend. I suppose it's time to use my savings, despite the fact that I have a policy not to withdraw any money once it goes into my savings account. Mostly because I like seeing my money grows whenever I deposited my salary every time I completed my mission... it was exhilarating to see the amount of numbers on my paycheck going into my savings. It was one of the perks of being an S-Ranked Cavalier since we are risking our lives for these big-pay missions.

'And I could find some places for my dramatic end, if I ever have the courage to pull it through,' a fleeting thought crossed my mind as my lips almost curled into a smile.

"Well then, I'm going to go out," I had no idea why I was even telling this to my brothers; nevertheless, I stood up and headed towards the doors.

"Where are you going?" Kaoru-nii asked in a curious tone.

I paused by the doorway, and half-turned around to face him, only to see that Hikaru-nii was also looking at me even though he did not say anything. "I don't know; maybe sightseeing or shopping," I replied with a shrug.

"We'll show you around. Right, Hikaru?" Kaoru-nii responded as he looked to the mentioned person. He looked as if he was asking for my oldest brother to agree with whatever he had said.

Hikaru gave a slight shrug in response and said, "Sure, why not?"

"Don't bother. If I wanted you to show me around, I would have asked," I retorted just before I left the room.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 3:<span>

Kaoru let out a sharp intake after his sister left the room, and exhaled deeply a moment later. From what he had seen during breakfast, Riku did not seem like a person who was depressed; in fact, he would even say that she looked normal… although she did come across as emotionless at times, but normal nonetheless.

However, he could not help but feel guilty when she did not say anything to his query, and that his past actions had indeed caused her to this state. He knew that there were many things about Riku that he did not know, and he was ashamed to admit that he had spent many years hating her for something that was out of her control and did not bother to learn anything about her. The only thing he remembered distinctly was her birthday, June 18, and it was merely because her birthdate was a combined total of his and Hikaru.

"Hikaru…" Kaoru trailed off as he looked at his twin. He knew that Hikaru was feeling guilty as well; it was a twin thing, but he also knew that his older twin would not admit to it.

"It still doesn't change anything. I still hate her," Hikaru responded stubbornly with his arms crossed, and his head turned.

Kaoru sighed in response as he massaged his temple. He knew that his twin was stubborn, but to this point…? "Hikaru," he began with a frown, but continued when his twin turned to look at him quizzically, "I think we should stop holding a grudge towards Riku."

Hikaru opened his mouth to say something, but Kaoru cut in before he could, "I don't know if you noticed, but the Riku we just saw is drastically different from the Riku we once knew."

"Well, she used to be an attention-seeking crybaby," Hikaru scoffed at the memory.

Kaoru slowly nodded in response, and continued, "Right… I think something big must have happened for her personality to change. I have a feeling it has to do with the way we treated her when we were young."

"Kaoru," Hikaru started in an exasperated tone and gave him a crossed look. "It's been ten years since we last saw her. Anyone would have changed that much in that time span. Look, I personally think she's just seeking for attention like she did years ago; she doesn't even look like she has depression or whatever."

"But Hikaru…" he whispered with a frown, and was dejected by his twin's response. "Are we going to sit by and watch until our sister has no choice but to kill herself?"

Hikaru, on the other hand, did not say anything in response as he merely pursed his lips to a frown.

* * *

><p>I made my way upstairs, holding onto the railing as my vision blurred momentarily. I would have fallen backward had I not held on, but in that instance, I could not help but wondered if I would have bled to death from the fall from near the top of the stairs. I glanced down from the spot, despite the fact that I was seeing doubles, and for a moment, I had half the mind to jump just to see how it would have been.<p>

'I wonder if anyone would have cared,' a fleeting thought crossed my mind.

I clenched my fingers around the railing as I tried to shake my thoughts away, and continued my way to my room. I disliked the fact that these types of thoughts constantly whirled around in my mind.

'It's in human's nature to want to live,' my mind echoed.

I did not say anything in response while I leaned against the wall, trying to stop the blurring of my vision and the zaps I felt in my brain. I hate how I am so reliant on Sertraline medication; and that if I did not take the pills for more than a day – even though I was stretching it – I would immediately feel the withdrawal symptoms.

"Have I gone to the point of no return?" I murmured under my breath.

I painfully continued with my way to my room, at least what it seemed like my room since it looked like my room, and plopped down on the bed facedown. That sightseeing trip would have to wait until these zaps in my brain goes away. Before I knew it, darkness overcame my vision, and I could only hear silence.

**x0x0x0x**

_"I remember nothing in Seaford. Nothing," I whispered to the darkness. _

_"You remember everything in Seaford… everything," a voice refuted with my statement. _

_Almost immediately, I saw an image of an auburn haired girl handcuffed to the ceiling in a cramped room with her feet barely touching the floor. She was in her underwear, and even if the image had only flashed by for a moment, I saw tears rolling down her cheeks as an unknown figure whipped her. She felt familiar, and I felt as if I should know her. _

_"The house, for instance, you saw it. You're sure you did," the voice insisted, but I did not say anything in response so it continued, "There was a house in Seaford; how could you not help but see it?" _

_"I did not see the house in Seaford. I saw nothing in Seaford," I finally replied, almost robotically. _

_I turned away from another image of the girl now tied around a giant rock in a moving vehicle. For a brief moment, I saw her cuts and long abrasions on her body, some of which were bleeding. _

_"No, I remembered nothing in Seaford," I tried to convince the voice. _

_Another image flashed by of the same girl, now shoved over the cliff with a giant rock tied around her body. _

_"Are you sure you remembered nothing in Seaford?" the voice replied in above whisper. _

_I answered, "Yes," as I turned my gaze away from the next image. I felt goose-bumps on my arms and on my body as I felt water sloshing around my person to the point that I felt as if I was drowning. _

_"I've always wept over your fate in Seaford," The voice stated mournfully, and added, "Always." _

_Suddenly, my vision clouded in blackness as the sound of waves crashing against a shore thundered continuously in my ears. It sounded soothing; yet at the same time, it was chilling. _

_"No, what would you have cried about?" I murmured to no one in particular. "You made it all up. What happened in Seaford was nothing but an illusion." _

* * *

><p>Kaoru sighed as he put away his cell phone after listening to Tamaki's rant about how they should spend family time together with Haruhi. Normally, he would have gone along with the blond's plan; however, he was worried about his sister. He could have sworn that her face was pale when she walked out of the dining room.<p>

"Tono still doesn't want to admit that he likes Haruhi," Hikaru commented with a chuckle as he put his hands in his pocket.

He raised an eyebrow at that remark, and said with a smirk, "What about you? I thought for sure that you like her too."

Hikaru merely shrugged in response as he stopped by their bedroom, and said, "It's fun to tease Tono, you know," before he opened the double doors. He wordlessly paused in his track, and narrowed his golden amber eyes at the figure occupying their bed.

"Hikaru?" Kaoru said questionably as he came up behind his brother, and peered over his twin's figure.

"What is _she_ doing on our bed?" his twin stated bitterly as he stalked over to their bed. He then yanked a pillow, almost heartlessly, from underneath Riku, and shouted, "Oi! Go sleep in your own bed!"

Instead of answering to Hikaru's demand, and waking from her slumber, Riku muttered in almost desperate tone, "No, I remembered nothing in Seaford."

"What the hell is she talking about?" Hikaru grumbled as he peered down at her lying figure, and prodded her with a finger. It was almost as if he did not want to touch her. "Great, we'll have to wash our sheets after she wakes up," he added in distaste.

"Hikaru!" Kaoru chided as he shook his head at his older twin's actions, and sat down at an edge of his bed. "I wonder what she's dreaming about," he murmured, noticing how Riku's fingers were curled tightly around the sheets.

"No, what would you have cried about?" Riku's quiet voice echoed in their bedroom. Kaoru and Hikaru shared a confused glance before their gaze shifted over to the figure occupying on their bed. "You made it all up. What happened in Seaford was nothing but an illusion," her voice continued.

"I wonder what happened in Seaford," he whispered with a troubled expression, and shifted his attention when he heard a scoff coming from his twin.

"I don't care," Hikaru retorted as he prodded Riku harder as he shouted, "Oi! Get up!"

"Hikaru, let her sleep," Kaoru responded as he stopped his brother from waking up his sister.

"Why are you taking her side, Kaoru? She's tainting our sheets with her germs," He merely raised an eyebrow at the response he received. He knew that his older twin was immature and stubborn; however, considering how this is their sister they were talking about…

"Why are you holding a grudge over something she had no control over?" Kaoru blurted out with a frown as he looked over to his brother, and continued, "You know that she was treated differently because Mom wanted a daughter."

Hikaru scowled in reply as he ran a hand through his hair, and stated, "No matter what good things we did, she was seen as Miss Perfect Little Princess in our parents' eyes, and we were nothing but troublemakers."

"That's because we were indeed mischievous," he countered with a sigh as he narrowed his gaze at his twin, silently daring Hikaru to say otherwise. "You know it's true. If we can let Haruhi and the others into our world, why can't we do the same for Riku, our sister?"

Hikaru did not say anything in response as Riku chose that moment to wake up.

* * *

><p>I slowly sat up from my position, seeing two blurred figures on my left from the corner of my eyes as I held my head. I could still feel the feeling of drowning as the girl did in my dream… the feeling of being encompassed by large body of water… the feeling of not being able to breath and being tied down to a rock.<p>

"That could not have been me," I muttered as I lowered my hand once the blurriness faded. However, I knew in the back of my mind that was not the case because that the girl I have seen in my dream was me. As much as I did not want to deny it repeatedly, I was always reminded that the girl is me.

"Riku?" I heard Kaoru-nii's tentative voice from my left.

"Sorry," I murmured as I got off the bed, ignoring my body's protest that still needed sleep. Even though I wanted to go back to sleep, a part of me did not want to experience the same dream again as I often did whenever I sleep. The same dream of the auburn haired girl being tortured and sent to her death… the very dream I have been seeing for the past three years.

"Are you alright? You look pale," Kaoru-nii continued as he approached me with a worried expression.

"Yes," I responded almost automatically. It was another lie, but I did not want anyone to know how that dream had affected me… especially them.

I hate that dream… the dream that felt like a memory. Every time I sleep, I feel as if I was watching some scenes from a broken video tape repeatedly. At times, it would be a scene whether it being the girl being tortured until near death or the girl being drowned to death, for a prolonged period of time until I wake up.

"You're lying," Hikaru-nii blurted out with his arms crossed. He looked displeased by my answer; but why would he?

I did not say anything in response as the sound of water rushing echoed in my ears. I rubbed my left arm, trying to comfort myself; and in that instance, I saw an image of myself painting the ocean in red with blood seeping out from the cuts as I drowned.

I blinked back to reality when I felt a thumb running over my cheek. I suddenly found myself staring into a pair of golden amber eyes, Kaoru-nii's face to be exact. "Do you want to talk about it, Riku?" he asked in a soft tone.

"No…" I whispered in the same tone as I looked away from his gaze. I found myself looking out the large window, watching how the breeze played with the curtains, and added to myself, "What happened in Seaford was an illusion."

No matter what, I wanted to convince myself that as futile as it would have seemed.

* * *

><p>Hikaru knew his brother was right, even though he did not want to admit it out loud. He knew that he was holding a grudge towards his sister for something that was not her fault. However, when he remembered how his parents dotted on her when they were young, he felt anger bubbling deep within him. He was glad when she moved to England with their father when they were seven.<p>

Over the years, his anger and dislike of her slowly ebbed away. When she returned ten years later, what he felt towards her was nothing more than a dull pain in his chest. Although he would not show it, he was surprised to see how much she had changed. Hikaru knew that there was no way that Riku, who had been sweet and innocent – not that he would admit it out loud –, would have changed to the point that she is just a shell of her former self. He also did not want to accept the fact that someone who had been so cheerful could be taking anti-depressants. Despite the fact that he had not seen her for ten years, that transformation was that drastic, and even though he did not want to say it, he realized that Kaoru's deduction was correct.

Her earlier statement of, "What's broken twice cannot be fixed so easily," was echoing constantly in his mind. He wanted to know what she meant; but in the back of his mind, he had a feeling of what that remark meant… especially when he heard her murmuring in her sleep about Seaford.

He distinctly heard her murmuring, "What happened in Seaford was an illusion." When he looked over to her direction, the distant look in her eyes somewhat scared him; it was as if she was present, yet at the same time, she was not.

"Are you sure you're alright, Riku?" Hikaru could not help but ask, saying his sister's name for the first time. He did not know what compelled him to say that; but he was inwardly glad that she snapped out of whatever state she was in.

"Yes," she responded as she stepped away from Kaoru. She rubbed her arms a couple of times as if she was trying to warm herself, and said, "Sorry for the trouble. I'll go back to my room now."

She did not give them a chance to say anything, and immediately left the room. He could not help but think that she was running away from something at the speediness of her action.

"Hikaru," his twin spoke in a low tone.

"What is it, Kaoru?" he responded in the same tone as he turned to face his brother.

"I'm glad you had a change of heart," Kaoru stated with a smile that he could not help but mirror back.

He did not want to tell his twin that he has not completely forgiven his sister, but if Kaoru could let go of the past… he supposed he, too, could try.

* * *

><p><strong>Footnote:<strong> The dream scene is inspired by the movie _Hiroshima Mon Amour _(insert disclaimer here).


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 4:<span>

The first thing I realized when I woke up from my second nap was the voices coming from downstairs, and the second thing I realized was how hungry I am. With a tired groan, I slowly sat up from my position, yawning as I did so, and rubbed the sleep from my eyes. I let out another yawn as I grabbed my cell phone from my nightstand and pocketed the item.

It was weird how I felt so rejuvenated from a few hours of sleep, and oddly, I did not have these constant thoughts about suicide as I had for the past couple of days. It was strange; but I supposed it was because I have yet to adjust to the withdrawal symptoms. I really disliked how much the side effects affected me, and I could not help but be irked by how a few hours of sleep reversed that effects. It was really troubling when I was still a Cavalier, especially when I was on missions; and I do not know if I should be glad or be annoyed by the fact that I got used to these changes.

"I want ramen," I muttered under my breath as I stretched muscles.

I then headed to my closet and grabbed a black cotton short-sleeved long cardigan. I slipped on the article as I walked out of the room, yawning once again as I did so. I really detested the after-effects of the withdrawal symptoms, especially since I feel extra tired even though I feel rejuvenated for a few hours.

"Hmm… okonomiyaki sounds good too," I added as an afterthought while I descended down the stairs.

I briefly wondered where that list of food that I wanted to eat went. I had some time on the plane (12 hours in fact) since I was not able to sleep, and to pass time, I even as far as to make a list of food that I wanted to eat. However, it was weird that I cannot remember where I had stored it.

After receiving some directions from a maid (I got lost), I arrived to the dining room and noticed my brothers sitting around the dining table with five other people. I paused by the doorway, staring at them for a moment to wonder who they were, but I inwardly shook my head to snap out of my musing and walked into the room.

As soon as I stepped foot into the room, a guy with blond hair and violet-blue eyes assaulted me with a, "Ah, lovely Princess, who might you be?"

"Tono, stop flirting with our sister," my brothers immediately appeared out of nowhere, and each placed an elbow on my shoulders.

"S-sister?" the blond guy gaped with his jaw dropped on the ground, and his eyes widened in shocked.

I stood there stunned for a few seconds, surprised by their remark and action before I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. I immediately shrugged off their weights on my shoulder, and said without turning around to face them, "I don't know what you're playing at; but don't start acting like you care when you don't. You don't need to like me just because you pity me for what you saw earlier. Besides, I should know that hate doesn't dissolve in just a few hours."

I began walking towards the kitchen when someone grabbed my wrist and stopped me in my tracks. I quizzically turned around to see Kaoru-nii holding onto my right wrist as he said, "I don't want us to be at each other's throat for the rest of our lives. We want to be in your world too."

"You've change too much that we don't know you anymore," Hikaru-nii added from his spot near me.

"You never knew me in the beginning so you can't make that comparison," I responded with a dry chuckle as I snatched my hand away from my brother's grasp, and tugged away a lock of my hair behind my left ear.

"Please, Riku," my brothers said in union with hopeful gazes.

I let out a sigh when I noticed their expectant expressions, and from the corner of my eyes I saw the five guests' anxious looks. I silently could not help but notice how fast this situation was turning out to be; I mean, just yesterday, they hated me and wished that I was not born. And now… they wanted to be in my world.

'Family… You have to forgive them because they're one of a kind in this world,' my mind whispered as I shook my head inwardly. I supposed I could accept them again, and see if they truly care about me as they indirectly said they do. Finally, I muttered, "Alright fine, last chance. If you mess it up, I don't care what our parents say, I will cut you off from my life for good."

"Did you see it, Hikaru? Our Riku is acting all tough," Kaoru snickered behind his hand as he eyed at me with amused glints in his eyes.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at his statement while I pondered why in the world I decided to let them into my world this quickly. I wondered if the reason was because I had secretly wanted them in my life all along… This was too confusing. However, what's done is done; and there is nothing I could do to change it.

'Ayame-san did mentioned that the first step to solving this issue to forgive them,' I involuntarily recalled what my psychiatrist had said in one of our sessions.

I snapped out of my musing when I heard a boyish feminine voice remarked, "Isn't that great, you two?" I turned around to see a feminine looking person, whom I assumed to be female since the person seemed to lack masculinity, with short brunette hair and brown eyes.

"We're so sorry for everything, Riku," my brothers said in union.

I tensed slightly when I saw my brothers approaching towards me for what it seemed like a hug with their arms raised. I immediately stated, "Don't touch me," and in one swift movement, I sidestepped from their incoming figures.

I silently murmured in my mind, 'I am fine. Nothing will happen to me,' like a mantra while I tried to calm my nerves. "Sorry," I apologized almost guiltily when I noticed a flash of hurtful expression flashing on their visage.

"Sorry, we'll keep in mind that you don't like it," Kaoru-nii responded with an apologetic smile.

"It's not that I don't like being hugged," I replied in a low tone, looking away from the curious gazes, and continued in a murmur, "It's just… I had a bad experience."

**x0x0x0x**

Hikaru looked over to his brother momentarily before he shifted his gaze back to his sister. He saw her eyes clouded over for a few seconds before that look disappeared momentarily afterwards, and was replaced a calm expression. He wanted to ask her what she was thinking to cause that kind of expression to appear and what caused her not to like being hugged; however, he knew that she would not tell him with the relationship they have now.

'I guess I'll have to wait,' he glanced over to Kaoru, who then looked over to his direction as if in silent agreement. He then opened his mouth to introduce his sister to the Host Club when a hip-hop like music interrupted him.

_"I really want to be with you  
>I really want to, really want to be with you<br>Cause you're my love, you're my shine, you're my dear  
>So trust me, trust me, trust me, yeah." <em>

Riku gave an awkward smile at the melody, and let out a small chuckle as she pulled out her cell phone. He supposed he bore the same surprised look as the one on Kaoru's face. Hikaru closed his slackened jaw at the unexpected ringtone, and shook his head as if to say that he would not question it.

_"(I'm here) I'm right here  
>(Call me) I'm right beside you<br>(Trust me) You don't need to fear anything anymore  
>(My dear) We're connected by<br>(Trust me) An invisible thread  
>So feel my warmth by your side." <em>

"Hello?" it was the first time he had heard his sister speaking in English. He probably would not admit to anyone, maybe expect to his twin, that he found her British-accented English… cute.

He watched as she pulled her cell phone away from her ear, and retorted, "Hey! Leave Kumajiro out of this!" in an offended tone even though Hikaru was positive he saw an amused glint in her eyes. He was confused as to what Riku was talking about as he looked over to his twin, who gave a slight shrug in response.

"No~ why must you be evil and hold my poor Kumajiro hostage? He's innocent, I tell you, innocent!" Riku whined to the caller as she walked over to the refrigerator, opening the door and pulled out a water bottle. She then held her cell phone in the crook of her right shoulder as she twisted open her drink, and then once again held her phone in her left hand.

Hikaru gave a slight sigh as he walked over back to the dining table, and sat down next to Mori-senpai. He plopped an elbow on the table as his twin took a seat next to him. It was the first time he had heard Riku speaking in that lax manner, and he was somewhat jealous of the other person since he knew that she would not speak to him nor Kaoru in that casual manner just yet.

"So how come we didn't know about her, you doppelgangers?" Tamaki-senpai asked as he pointed an accusing finger at him and Kaoru.

"That's because Riku's been living in England all these times," they responded in union, and before Tamaki-senpai had a chance to refute, the seriousness in his sister's tone caused him and everyone to turn over to face her.

"Ayame-sensei did say that a change of scenery would be good," she stated solemnly while she leaned against an island, not bothering to leave the room to continue with her conversation. "Besides, I had a feeling that my Dad's transfer letter would not be accepted, and I was right. Don't worry, I'll do something about it soon," she continued in the same seriousness before she pulled her phone from her ear to say, "You better let go off my poor Kumataro and ship him here along with the rest of them!"

"Kumataro? I thought it was Kumajiro," Haruhi murmured under her breath.

"Well then, you should have brought them with you! There is no way I'm going to spend that much money to ship your 100 plus stuffed animals!" a voice screamed out from Riku's cell phone.

Silence echoed in the dining room as Hikaru looked at his twin, and then at his sister with a sweat drop. He was awed that Riku, at age 16, still like stuffed animals.

Riku cleared her throat as she let out a tight smile towards them, and said in a somber tone, "So what's the reason for your call? I highly doubt you would spend money for an international call for mere pleasantries."

"She seems so different from earlier, isn't she?" Kaoru spoke in a low tone.

He nodded in agreement as he eyed at his sister, inwardly realizing how distant he felt with her. It was the same feeling he got when his twin was not with him. "The gap is huge," he commented, referring to her personality change and how little they knew about her.

"One step at a time, Hikaru," Kaoru responded with a small smile.

Riku took a sharp intake and let out a deep sigh in relief, making Hikaru and the rest of the Host Club to look over to her direction again. "That took long enough," she stated with a dry chuckle as she threw her head back, looking at the ceiling, and continued, "They should have done this in the first place instead. In any case, thanks for the great news, Jeanne. Yeah, I'll be okay."

"I wonder if it relates to what happened in Seaford," Hikaru could not help but wondered out loud, earning him confused expressions from the rest of the Host Club.

"What happened in Seaford?" Tamaki-senpai inquired with a tilt of his head to indicate his curiosity.

"We don't know," he and Kaoru responded in union with a shrug.

Kaoru shifted his gaze over to Riku for a moment, and added, "I think whatever happened there traumatized her, and we don't want to push her to tell us, especially when she's not ready yet."

"That's sweet of you, Kao-chan, Hika-chan," Honey-senpai chimed in with a smile.

"Actually, I know what happened," Kyoya-senpai began as he pushed his glasses to the bridge of his nose, and let out a knowing smirk. "There was an incident in Seaford, England three years ago; reportedly, a Cavalier was tortured to death, and later, left to die in Irish Sea."

"That's horrible!" Tamaki-senpai cried out with a horrified look on his expression.

Honey-senpai clenched tightly onto his Usa-chan as his bangs covered his eyes. Hikaru bit the inside of his cheeks as he held onto his twin's hand, not knowing what to say, and he felt some assurance when Kaoru squeezed his hand in response.

"The name of that Cavalier is Ren," Kyoya-senpai continued as if he had not been interrupted.

Riku approached to the table as she pocketed her cell phone, and took a seat directly across from Kyoya-senpai. There was an unreadable expression in her eyes that Hikaru could not decipher; however, that look disappeared before he could ponder on the matter. She gave an inexpressive smile, and said, "You're mistaken; nothing happened in Seaford."

Hikaru let out a gulp when he noticed a strange glint in Kyoya-senpai's eyes, and immediately turned to warn his sister when the Shadow King spoke, "Oh? Are you saying that my resources were wrong?" with a cold smile.

"Riku," Kaoru interjected to try and save their sister before she ended up making an enemy with an Ootori heir.

"Yes," she responded as if she had not heard his twin, who merely face palmed at the remark. Once again, Hikaru noticed a distant look in Riku's eyes, which disappeared a moment later as she said, "You don't know what happened on that day. No one does… and no one would ever will."

"What do you mean?" Tamaki-senpai cut in as he furrowed his eyebrows.

Kyoya-senpai raised an eyebrow at her statement, and quietly cleared his throat before he spoke again, "Are you then insinuating that you do know what happened?"

Riku pursed her lips as a thoughtful expression crossed her face before she blinked, making the distant look in her eyes disappeared. After a couple of seconds of silence, she at last said, "I am not insinuating anything. I am merely stating that there are no records of what happened in Seaford."

"Uh, why don't we introduce our friends to you, Riku," Kaoru interrupted before neither Kyoya-senpai nor his sister had a chance to say anything.

* * *

><p>Once their introductions were out of the way, I stated, "Nice to meet you; as you have already figured out by now, I am Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii's younger sister, Riku," with a small smile and a slight bow. I was not going to say anything about my brothers in the Host Club or bother to find out what that club was all about. If I wanted to know the details, I could simply research it; but that just seemed bothersome, and time consuming.<p>

After exchanging some pleasantries with the group, I saw Ootori-san flipped open his notebook to a certain page, and readjusted his glasses before he said, "Ah, yes. Riku Lucille. You are the twins' sister, but you have taken your father's last name instead of your mother's, Hitachiin. According to your profile, you are one of the top five students of Imperial Cavalier Academy, and have held the position of the Queen for four consecutive years. Impressive, I must say."

I merely let out a small smirk at his information – I did not want to know where he got that information from –, but I did not bother to say anything. In the eyes of the public, Imperial Cavalier Academy is just like any other private school wherein the students studied regular curriculum learned in normal school; however, the last hour is dedicated to specialized training based on the student's rank. In short, this Academy is akin to a military school since all students, at the very least, are trained to be able to utilize weapons.

The position Ootori-san spoke of was simply a façade that the Student Council (or Imperial Guardians as we called it at the Academy) established for the public. There are five positions: the King, the Queen, the Rook, the Bishop, and the Knight. Yes, these names resemble the chess pieces; and it was because at the time the Headmaster was deciding names, he was addicted to chess. Weird, right?

In any case, the Imperial Guardians are the S-Ranked Cavalier, and each bore an alias to use during missions. That way, our civilian life and our Cavalier life do not interconnect. Besides, the fun part of bearing an alias is altering our appearance so that we do not look like our civilian selves. This, of course, also meant the public (mostly the police departments around the world) know or have heard about us, and by 'us', I meant our alias self.

"Imperial Cavalier Academy…?" Fujioka-san questioned as she tilted her head in a curious manner. "What kind of school is that?"

"A regular private school in London," I answered with a smile, amused by their surprised expressions when they heard that I held my position for four years straight. I highly doubted that they knew the real duties of my position entailed since they were not written anywhere on the school's website aside from the Student Council duties façade.

"But you're going to attend Ouran with us starting Monday, ne Riku," Hikaru-nii stated with a mischievous glint in his eyes that I probably should be wary of. "Did you have to wear a uniform at Imperial Cavalier Academy?"

I looked over to his direction and raised a puzzled eyebrow in response before I verbally answered, "Of course. Why are you asking this?"

Indeed, the students at Imperial Cavalier Academy are required to adorn uniforms; for girls, a standard white blouse, a black necktie, a black skort, and a pair of knee-high stiletto boots whereas for guys, a standard white shirt, a black necktie, a pair of black slacks, and a pair of black shoes. However, what differentiated our uniform from other schools was that they are bulletproof.

"What do you think of the color yellow?" Kaoru-nii asked with a nervous smile.

"Depends on the shade," I answered, still not knowing where the conversation was heading.

Hikaru-nii pulled out something from the bag, and held it out for me to see. I stared at a yellow puffy long-sleeved dress, looking at the monstrosity for a few seconds longer before I said, and "…Don't tell that's the uniform."

"I'm afraid it is," Fujioka-san sighed as she eyed at the uniform with a hint of disgust in her expression.

Before I could comment on a maid walked into the room, holding a tray with a steaming bowl, and announced, "Young Mistress, here's your food."

"Ah, thanks," I responded to her, and turned out to face her direction, just in time to come face-to-face with a bowl of hot soup.

"Riku!" my brothers shouted in alarm as they stood up from their seats, and then turned to glare at the maid, who was stammering out apologies. They then left the room, hopefully to get some ice for me, because my face was burning from the burn.

"Wearing ramen is _not_ on my agenda," I muttered darkly under my breath while I pulled out a strand of noodle from my hair. I stared at it for a few seconds, exhaling slowly to calm my nerves, and momentarily ignored the burning sensation on the left side of my face. It was, after all, the place where I received the blunt force from the hot soup.

"I am so sorry, Young Mistress. Please excuse my clumsiness," the maid apologized for the umpteenth time as she bowed repeatedly. She then took out a handkerchief from her pocket, and approached to me as she said, "Please, allow me to help you, and make up for my mistake."

I did not comment to her remark, and quietly let her wipe away the remains of the soup from my face. From the corner of my eyes, I noticed Fujioka-san and Suoh-san were trying to clean up the mess, while Haninozuka-san, Morinozuka-san, and Ootori-san were sitting there, watching the scene in silent shock. The latter, of course, was jotting down something in his notebook.

Just as I turned my attention back to the maid, I saw her slowly taking out a knife from the depth of her outfit. Since her right side was obscured from the Host Club's view, they did not see the weapon; and I certainly would have missed it if I was not a Cavalier.

'Should I let her stab me or should I dodge?' I wondered as the knife unraveled into my view.

My mind quickly concluded with a, 'Dodge it; after all, getting stabbed hurts.'

Before I could comprehend what I was doing , I had the maid underneath me in one quick movement while my left hand tightly held onto her hand holding the knife, and my right hand holding her left hand in place. I clenched onto her hand until I heard a satisfied 'clang' to indicate that the knife had been dropped on the floor.

'Sometimes I really dislike my instinct,' I sighed inwardly when I noticed what I had just done.

"Were you planning to kill me too?" I inquired coldly, going into what I liked to call 'mission mode', and disregarded what the Host Club was doing and focused my attention on the woman below me. When she did not say anything, I narrowed my eyes at her figure, and let out a smirk when she flinched at my stare. "Answer me, _why_ did you want to kill me?" I prodded in a deadly calm tone.

No one spoke anything for a while until I heard a loud 'thud' of something dropping on the floor, and almost immediately, I heard, "Riku, are you alright? Just what did this _woman_ do to you? And why is there a knife on the floor?" from my brothers.

"She was planning to assault your sister," Fujioka-san provided in a deadpanned tone as she shook her head.

"That's because!" the maid cried out from her position, and continued when I looked at her direction, "That's because it's weird how the Young Masters let you into their world that quickly. They never had done that with anybody, not even with other staffs who have been here for a long time. You must've tricked them!"

I nearly jumped in startled when I heard my brothers' voices from above my head, "That's because Riku is our sister. How is that weird? And by the way, you're fired."

"But—" she continued, but instantly stopped talking when I leaned down near her ear.

"Don't mess with me, _woman_. I'm not afraid to make you disappear as if you never existed," I hissed to the woman in a low tone. My lips then curled into a smirk when her face paled, and her figure began trembling. This was one of the perks of being a Cavalier since I learned useful methods as this (that is, scaring people with simple words and looks). With a satisfied smirk, I got off her and pulled out my own handkerchief from my pocket, and grabbed the fallen knife so that my fingerprints were not on the weapon.

I then pulled out a clear bag from one of the drawers and placed the knife inside, all the while without tearing my gaze away from the maid. "Now, get out of this house before I changed my mind and charge you with assault," I stated in an eerily calm tone. I made a mental note to scan the fingerprints on the knife so that I can look up that maid's profile and background.

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed that the maid still had not moved from her spot, and before anyone had a chance to say anything, I narrowed my eyes at her direction. "What are you still doing here?" I asked in a deathly calm done as I casually ran a hand through my hair. "_Get out._"

"You'll pay for this!" the maid shouted with a glare and left the room. I could not help but inwardly chuckle at her dry promise; after all, did she forget that I have the power to change her life for the worse?

"She's going to pay," my brothers said together darkly as they glared at the retreating figure of the maid. Kaoru-nii grabbed the fallen ice pack, and went back to the kitchen to probably exchange it with a new one.

I let out a deep sigh after she had left, and gingerly touched my left cheek, wincing when I felt a burning sensation. "Don't worry about small fries like her," I stated as I ran a hand through my hair once more and tied it in high ponytail. My lips then curled to form a dark smirk as I added, "Sooner or later, she's going to realize that she messed with the wrong person. We were the ones who were supporting her family financially by giving her this job."

"Let me see the damage, Riku," Kaoru-nii remarked as he came back with another ice pack wrapped in a soft-looking towel.

"At least it didn't get to your eyes," Hikaru-nii commented as he peered from behind Kaoru-nii.

"I'm surprised, though," Ootori-san stated as he readjusted his glasses, and continued with a smirk on his expression, "How did you know that she was going to stab you?"

"Please," I began with a dignified scoff, and accepted the ice pack, which I placed on my burning cheek. "What she did was the oldest and most obvious trick in the book. I saw it from the beginning when she returned with my ramen, and how she tripped over nothing in particular so that the food would land on me and only me."

The Host Club blinked in surprised at my response, and finally, Suoh-san responded, "If you had seen it coming, couldn't you have dodged it?"

"I could have," I answered with a shrug as I moved the position of the ice pack, and continued, "But I wanted to have a rational reason to fire her, and her attempt to assassinate me was just a bonus to uphold that intention. I don't appreciate people rummaging through my belongings without a probable cause. Now, if you will excuse me, I need to go shower and change."

I left the room before anyone could say anything. It would have been a perfect opportunity to die; however, things definitely would have been messy since my brothers and the Host Club had been present. Besides, I would not put it pass my brothers to try and save me… and then ship me off to a hospital.

'And I loathe hospital visits,' I added in the back of my mind.

* * *

><p><strong>Song Used:<strong>

_Trust Me_ by Matsushita Yuya

**Random Notes about Riku: **

She likes stuffed animals (mostly the ones that happened to be large enough for her to hug), and has a huge collection (of more than 100). She keeps changing the name of her favorite stuffed bear, and cannot remember what she calls him. At one point, he was called 'Kumajiro' but she recently changed it to 'Kumataro' since she forgot its name.

She has a different persona when she is in 'mission mode'. However, one should also note that how she portrays herself to the world is different from how her thoughts portray about her.

**My thought/concern with this chapter:  
><strong>

I know I'm going too fast with Riku's relationship with the twins; but I have something planned for this.

P.S.: There is going to be an Ouran live action/drama, anyone planning to watch it? Me? I'm curious to see how it will turn out.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 5:<span>

Monday came too quickly for me, not that I minded, since there was nothing to do around the house. I was too lazy to go to the bank to convert my Pounds into Yen so that I would be able to go sightseeing and shopping. Besides, I rather like my money in my savings and watch as it collects the large amount of interest. In addition, I had a feeling I will end up lost in the city since I do not know the vicinity well enough to navigate on my own, but I could easily utilize my skills to fix that problem. However, I have my own secret agenda that would be coming into play soon.

I let out a grumble as I stepped out of the shower, wrapped in a towel, and stared at the yellow monstrosity of a dress lying innocently on my bed. There was no way I was going to wear something as hideous as that… unless it was one of my undercover mission, and even then I would rather not… but if I was paid a large sum, then I would change my mind.

A smirk then curled on the corner of my lips as a brilliant idea came into mind, 'I believe this calls for some…tests to see how durable the uniform is.'

**x0x0x0x**

Kaoru raised an eyebrow when he saw his sister walked into the dining room with a satisfied smirk on her expression. The second thing he noticed that she was not wearing the yellow dress uniform, but a white blouse with black tie hanging loose around her neck, a black pleated skirt, and a pair of knee-high stiletto heels. Essentially, Riku was wearing what he had seen her wore when she arrived.

"Good morning, honey," Yuzuha greeted before he or Hikaru had a chance, and added, "Why aren't you in your uniform?"

He blinked in startled when Riku's smirk transformed into what it looked like an innocent smile, and nearly face palmed when he heard, "I wanted to see how durable the uniform is. I can tell you that it's not flame-proof; but I haven't had a chance to conduct other tests since it failed that first one."

He then heard a chuckle, and when he looked over, Hikaru was laughing. Kaoru had to admit it was… unexpected side of Riku that he had just seen; however, he supposed he should have somewhat expected something like that to occur based on her expression when she saw the uniform.

"Riku honey, if you don't like the uniform, you could have just left it alone and not destroy it," Yuzuha sighed as she rubbed her temple.

"But Mom~" his sister whined with a pout as she took a seat across from him and Hikaru. "I just wanted to see if it is durable as poofy as it looked. Besides, there is no way I'm going to wear something that restricts my movement like that," the tone in her last statement was dark and cold to the point that it sent shivers down his spine.

"I'll talk to the Chairman, and see if we can work something out," Yuzuha sighed as she rubbed her temple as if to indicate that it was too early to deal with this. He could not blame her; but then again, as a future fashion designer, the yellow uniform dress was so last century. "Oh yes, Riku," she continued after taking a long sip of her coffee, "You'll be using my last name instead of your Dad's, is that okay with you?"

An unreadable expression passed by Riku's face before she nodded in agreement. "I see," she verbally answered with a shrug, and added, "Anything else I should know?"

"As per Ouran Academy's rule, you're expected to join a club by the end of this week," Yuzuha stated before she took another sip of her coffee, and added, "And I want you to come home with your brothers since you don't know the route, and I don't want the chauffeur to make multiple rounds. So do try to get along with one another."

Riku gave a nod to indicate that she had understood, and said, "Alright," as she covered her mouth just seconds before she let out a yawn.

"And you two, be nice to your sister and look after her," Yuzuha continued as she gave a pointed look towards her eldest son.

"I can take care of myself, Mom," Riku cut in before he and Hikaru had a chance to say anything, and added, "I have been for the past decade. I'll be going now." With that, she stood up from her spot, grabbing an apple from a fruit basket before she headed out the door.

"Wait up, Riku!" Kaoru immediately added as he and his twin quickly finished their breakfast, and raced after their sister. "See you, Mom!" he managed to blurt out before they left the room.

**x0x0x0x**

The only thing that made my morning was when I was conducting some…tests, per se, to check the durability of the yellow uniform dress. It was fun and mesmerizing to see it go aflame, watching the fire dance across the yellow poofy dress and watching it tantalizingly lick against me, begging me to dance with it.

I took a bite of my rice ball, which one of the maids gave me before I boarded the limousine, and stared at the passing scenery. The ride was silent, but I did not mind since my music player was providing more than enough entertainment for me. It was not as if I needed my brothers to converse with me, and I did not expect them to do so either.

'The next mission will be coming in soon, if my calculations are correct,' I noted inwardly as the vehicle stopped at a red light. I watched many people walking passed by, some more in a hurry than others. From the corner of my eyes, I saw my brothers conversing with one another in a hushed tone while I ignored a conspicuous glance they threw at my direction.

From the distance, I noticed a tall red and white tower, mentally trying to remember what it was called until I realized a moment after that it was the Tokyo Tower. I made a mental note to visit it when I have time, mostly to toy with the idea of standing on the observation deck and watch the scenery below. For a split second, I thought of standing on one of the steel bars of Tokyo Tower, and looking down at the city, inwardly wondering how it would feel to jump from such height.

I was brought back to reality when a motorcycle zoomed passed by the limousine, making me stare at it for a few seconds. It made me remember of the time when I was riding _my_ motorcycle on a street in London chasing after a criminal. The thrill of going fast, uncaring about the danger and the speed limit was one of the greatest pleasures I had as a Cavalier.

'It was a tantalizing tango with death. I almost miss it,' I thought with a smile on my expression, which I noted from the reflection of the window.

Before I realized it, the limousine came to a complete stop, and a brief moment later, the chauffeur came around to open the door. My brothers were the first one to step out, and I followed shortly after, making sure to grab my book bag in the process. I noticed that they were waiting for me, but I merely spared them a glance before I continued walking to a pink building of what it seemed to be Ouran High School Academy… at least that was what the sign said.

'For now, I will go along with Mom's plan and attend this school until the mission ends,' I concluded in my mind.

* * *

><p>The day had passed by much faster than I thought it would be. One minute I was standing in front of the class introducing myself, and in the next moment, I was sitting in my seat doodling on the edge of my notebook. Before I knew it, I was eating lunch with my brothers and his friends, whom I ignored as much as I could, and when I next realize what was happening, school was already over.<p>

After receiving some directions from a couple of female students, I came to a stop at Third Music Room and warily eyed at the closed door. As much as I wanted to go home, I could not since Mom had specifically told me to return home with my brothers, who ran out of the room as soon as the bell rang and left me behind. Lovely bunch, are they not? Besides, I did not know the phone number to the chauffeur.

'Well… you could easily find out if you wanted to,' my mind responded in almost innocently.

I supposed I could, but I did not want either Mom or my brothers to find what I can really do. Which is why, I did not mind slipping into this character that I am playing as… especially if it would protect me from revealing how deep I have gotten.

I quietly shook my head away from these thoughts, and grasped the handle before I pushed the doors opened. A flurry of rose petals instantly attacked me, and as soon as I readjusted my vision to the sudden brightness of the room, I found myself staring at a sea of yellow dresses mixed with occasional spots of blue and black uniforms.

My ears buzzed with many chatters that filled the room, making my head hurt more than the usual throb; however, I ignored it for the moment as I glanced over the room, trying to locate my brothers so I could go home.

"Are you looking to designate anyone, Riku-san?" Ootori-san inquired suavely from my right.

When I looked over to his direction, he was writing in his black notebook, and momentarily glanced up to meet my gaze. "I suppose I will have to wait until my brothers are done so I can go home," I muttered under my breath with a sigh. I briefly wondered if this is what the Host Club is all about… talking to girls, having tea and pastries, and such.

"If you're looking for the twins, they are over there," Ootori-san stated as he pointed his pen towards my left.

I followed my gaze to where he pointed, and noticed my brothers leaning against each other as they chatted with the girls around them. It was unnerving to see them surrounded by gushing girls; but I quickly discarded that mental image as it was unimportant. I gave a nod of gratitude towards Ootori-san before I proceeded to my brothers.

I stopped by a large column when I heard, "—Yeah, I can't believe it either; but she's our sister." It was from Hikaru-nii, and some scuffling noises to indicate that he had shifted his footing.

"She must be very smart to be in our class even though she's a year younger," one of the girls commented. I glanced over the owner of the voice, silently noting that she had black hair with dark green tints and gray eyes.

I then peered over the column, just in time to hear Hikaru-nii answered, "Probably," with a shrug as if to indicate that he did not care. "But I don't know to handle a depressed person… everything we do is shot down," he continued with a frown.

His tone made it sound like everything was my fault… as if everything that happened on _that_ day was my fault. I clenched my hands tightly to the point that I felt a dull pain on my palms, inwardly noting it in the back of my mind that I would most likely have crescent marks on my hands. I did not know why I felt a sharp pain in my chest that nearly suffocated me, but I ignored it… just like how I ignored the voices coming from the other people in the room.

"Then you should stop pretending that you actually care about me when you don't," that slipped out of my mouth before I registered that I had said it. The one thing I realized was that every noise in the room had ceased, and the pain in my chest worsened to the point that I almost wanted to grab my heart out just to see if it would stop.

**x0x0x0x**

"I can't believe I had really decided to give you a second chance. But it's not surprising to me that you easily wasted that chance," Kaoru bit back a gasp when he heard his sister's cold voice. He unconsciously shivered at the tone, and leaned against his twin for some warmth. He fearfully gulped and looked over to the direction of Riku's voice, noticing that she was standing by a column in the middle of the left side of the room.

"Have you really given us a second chance? Any time we try to be friendly, you just kill off the attempt with some depressive answer!" Hikaru retorted with a glare towards Riku.

"Hikaru… calm down," Kaoru softly pleaded as he grabbed his older twin's hand.

He looked over to his sister, just in time to see her bit the bottom of her lips before she briefly closed her eyes. When she reopened her eyes, a glare pierced towards their directions, and Kaoru flinched at the stare. It was haunting; yet mesmerizing even though her eyes seemed lifeless despite brimming with unshed tears.

"If Mom asks, you can just tell her that I decided to walk home," Riku stated before she turned around walked out of the room, indicating that this conversation was done.

Silence blanketed the Host Club, save for a soft click to indicate that door had closed. No one said anything as Kaoru clenched and unclenched his hands, inwardly yelling in frustration at his twin for saying something as absurd as that.

"Damn it, Hikaru!" Kaoru turned around to glare at his twin, uncaring whether his clients saw the scene. He was too frustrated to care either way, and in the back of his mind, he knew that Kyoya-senpai was going to make him and his twin pay the fine. "How could you say something like that? We both know that Riku isn't ready to completely trust us yet!"

"You know she doesn't even let us approach her! Every time we try to talk to her, she just brushes us off. She could at least try to talk to us," Hikaru rebutted with an equally heated glare.

"That's because we haven't been in her life all her life. She probably doesn't know how to be around us," he responded in a soft tone, suddenly realizing that fact. He looked around the room when he noted how quiet it was, only to see that all the clients had left and he did not even know when they had filed out of the room.

"Hika-chan, Kao-chan," Honey-senpai said in a rather calm tone, and continued when he and his twin looked over, "I may not know much about Riku-chan, but I think you should give her time to adjust herself with you two in her life. Hika-chan needs to control his temper; otherwise, Riku-chan may actually completely give up on life. You two need to be patient and gentle with her."

"How do you know this, Honey-senpai?" Haruhi asked with furrowed eyebrows.

The mentioned person merely smiled in response as he held his Usa-chan tighter, and simply said, "Her eyes." Silently, Honey-senpai shifted his footing and continued in a serious tone, "She's trying to mask it; but occasionally, if you look closely, you can see that she's attempting to hide her pain. Sometimes, you can see that she's given up on life; but sometimes, she's fighting to survive."

Before he or one of the Hosts could say anything, he heard a loud tire screeching noise from outside, which was shortly followed by a dull thud. Tamaki-senpai immediately ran towards the windows to check the source; normally, he would have followed but he was too absorbed by what Honey-senpai had said.

Kaoru would have to admit that he had seen his sister's emotionless gazes a couple of times, and both times, he had brushed it off as something he had imagined. He knew that there was something wrong with her, especially since the day he had heard her mutter about Seaford during her sleep; but he did not pursue the matter like he normally would have.

Begrudgingly, he would have to admit that he does not care as much as he really should and normally would have. After all, Kaoru knew that whether he liked it or not, Riku would always be present and there was nothing he or Hikaru could do. He knew that in the back of his mind, he still blamed her for what happened during their childhood even though he kept telling himself that he had forgiven her.

"Oh… my…god…" Tamaki-senpai gasped with a sharp intake as he brought his hands over his mouth, and took several steps away from the window. "Hikaru, Kaoru… your sister…"

Kaoru snapped out of his thoughts as he looked over to the blond, who was looking pale by the second. From the corner of his eyes, he noticed that Hikaru, too, looked quizzically at Tamaki-senpai. Wordlessly, they made over to the window to check what had made the usually dramatic and animated Tamaki-senpai so shocked.

They were, however, not prepared to face what they saw.

**x0x0x0x**

Surprisingly, I felt nothing when I walked out of Third Music Room, and for a moment, I noted that what I felt now was similar to how I dealt with the aftermath of _that day_. It felt as if I was trapped within a glass case, watching the world passed by listlessly; yet, I knew that it was merely my imagination. In short, I considered what I was feeling to be akin to an experience of depersonalization… I was present yet, I was not at the same time.

I shook my head to steer out of my thoughts as I walked, letting my feet take me wherever they would take me. What Hikaru-nii had said earlier, "Any time we try to be friendly, you just kill off the attempt with some depressive answer!" was constantly repeating in my mind like a broken tape. I supposed it was my fault that I do not allow them to be close to me… but I was afraid to trust again.

"Just like how it's my fault I was kidnapped and assaulted," I whispered to no one in particular.

A loud continuous honk startled me out of my thoughts, and as I stared at the oncoming car, I heard my mind screaming, 'Move! What _are_ you doing? Get out of the way!'

However, I did not obey the command and merely continued to stare at the swerving car as if in slow motion even though I knew that in reality, everything that was happening around me was occurring in within a couple of seconds. I did not even realize that I had walked out of the campus, and was in the process of crossing the street in front of the school.

'…Are you planning to die?' my mind whispered sadly.

I did not answer as I merely closed my eyes. A second later, I felt pain in my abdomen as my body flew in the midair before I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head. My vision blurred as the voices around me increased, and I felt something warm blanketing around my body.

Somewhere in the distance, I heard panic-stricken shouts of, "RIKU!"

'And the plan begins,' I faintly murmured to my subconscious.

'Why would you planned this? You truly are a mastermind as they say. The irony of all this is that you weren't even planning to die,' that was the last thing I heard in my mind. 'Or…are you?'

* * *

><p><strong>Random Note:<strong>

Ah, the hospital scene in next chapter will be fun to write =w=~


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 6: <span>

It had been nearly an hour since he and his twin had arrived to one of Kyoya-senpai's family hospital. An hour since the accident … an hour since Hikaru had argued with his sister… an hour since Riku had walked out of the club room…forty-five minutes since he and Kaoru donated their blood. Hikaru placed his head in his hands, letting out a deep sigh as he looked at the floor. He was vaguely aware of Kaoru rubbing his back in almost soothing manner.

"It's my fault, isn't it?" he weakly asked to his twin as he looked over to the still lit red emergency light.

"We're both at faults," Kaoru responded in a somewhat firm tone to indicate that he was not going to get in trouble alone.

Before Hikaru could say anything, one of the doors to emergency room opened and a nurse shouted, "We need a stronger dosage of general anesthesia immediately!" When she received the supply from another nurse, she went back into the Emergency Room without even sparing them a glance.

"That's the fifth time they've asked for it," Haruhi commented from his right. "I wonder what's going on in there that's they're using that much anesthesia."

Hikaru had to admit that he was worried about what was occurring inside the Emergency Room. It was one of the most nerve-wrecking moments he ever had in his life, almost as bad as when Kaoru had disappeared from his sight during the Halloween event last year. He shook his head to clear his thoughts, and refocused on the matter at hand.

He glanced over to across the room where Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai were seating before his gaze shifted over to the rest of the waiting room. The entire Host Club had decided to accompany him and Kaoru, and he was glad that they did – even though he would not admit it out loud – because he appreciated the moral support. He and Kaoru would have called his mother to tell her the news, but she was in Milan for an important fashion week. Besides, they were afraid to admit to her that they had cause this to happen.

Despite the numbness he felt in his mind, his thoughts reverted back to what Honey-senpai had said an hour ago. There were times when he felt that Riku was more detached from the world than usual, but he merely thought it was his imagination since the feeling disappeared as soon as it appeared. Sure, he felt that her eyes seemed emotionless and lifeless most of the times; however, he thought that she was simply blocking him and Kaoru from her world.

'What a mess up relationship,' he concluded in his mind with a sigh just as a ding rang out in the silent waiting room.

Almost immediately, he and the Host Club stood up from their seats as the Emergency Room door opened. Three nurses wheeled out a stretcher in which Riku laid with an oxygen mask over her nose and mouth while one of the nurses was holding on to an IV stand as she wheeled it alongside the stretcher.

"Can I speak to her family members?" the doctor's voice startled Hikaru as he gave his sister one last glance before he shifted his attention back to the doctor. He inwardly noted that it was Kyoya-senpai's oldest brother, Ryo, if his memory served him correctly.

"Is there something wrong with Riku?" Kaoru instantly asked with a frown on his expression as the two of them approached to the doctor, who was standing a little away from the group.

"No," Ryo-sensei began but paused momentarily when he and Kaoru sighed in relief. "But there is something alarming we noticed during the surgery. It's not life-threatening; but I would like to know if you two have any idea why anesthesia doesn't seem to work on Riku-san."

"What do you mean?" Kyoya-senpai spoke as he and the others approached to them.

Ryo-sensei pushed up his glasses to the bridge of his nose, looking more worn out than a couple of minutes ago when he stepped out of the Emergency Room. "She woke up every ten minutes after we injected a dosage of anesthesia. Granted, it does not seem like she was aware of what was going on, it was still alarming. We will need to check to see mental state of mind when she regains her conscious for any signs post-traumatic stress."

"There is no need. That's because of what happened three years ago," Hikaru instantly looked over his shoulder when he heard a new voice spoke. He found himself looking at a young man with blond hair slightly covering a pair of blue eyes. It took him a moment to realize that he was staring at Nekozawa-senpai.

"Nekozawa-senpai, what are you doing here?" Tamaki-senpai shrieked in startle with his shaky finger pointing at the Black Magic Club's president.

Instead of answering Tamaki-senpai, Nekozawa-senpai merely loosened his black necktie as he approached to Ryo. Hikaru warily looked over to him, inwardly noting that he was not wearing the Ouran Academy uniform but white and black attire… something Riku had worn when she first arrived.

"There should be a record in the hospital's data system as Riku was treated at an Ootori Hospital in London," Nekozawa-senpai spoke in an eerily calm tone that somehow unnerved him. "Perhaps you should have looked into the file before you began with the treatment. Riku has developed some immunity against anesthetic shots, sedatives, and paralyzers. The more dosages she receives, the quicker she will overcome them."

"How do you know this?" Ryo-sensei asked wearily.

"All you need to know is that you should be glad that the King isn't here to deal with you instead," Nekozawa-senpai responded with a cold smile as he directed his gaze to Ryo-sensei. "And it is the Rook's duty to protect the Queen. Now then, which room is she residing at?"

**x0x0x0x0x**

Hikaru looked over to Nekozawa-senpai, who was walking a couple of steps behind Kyoya-senpai as the latter was leading the way to the room Riku was recovering in. He could not help but notice that the Black Magic Club president was not wearing the usual black cloak and the wig. It was as if Nekozawa-senpai did not need them.

Furthermore, Hikaru was curious as to how the blond knew Riku, and just as he was about to voice the inquiry, Haruhi cut in with a, "Nekozawa-senpai, how did you know Riku-san and that she was here?" The very question he was about to ask.

The mentioned blond gave a glance towards her direction, not saying anything for a moment as they turned around the corner. Finally, he spoke, "We went to the same middle school. As for knowing her location, Rion had some people to keep an eye on her since we don't want a repeat of what happened three years ago."

"Speaking of which, what happened three years ago?" Hikaru finally asked the question that had been bugging him since Nekozawa-senpai had walked in. "I've been hearing that phrase for some time now. And who the hell is Rion?"

"It's not my place to say; but what happened then had greatly traumatized her," Nekozawa-senpai responded just as the group stopped in front of a door with 'Room 421' imprinted on the nameplate. "We are hoping that by coming here for some time, she will be able to heal or at the very least, begin healing."

No one said anything as Hikaru shared a glance with his twin, who had his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He had noticed that Nekozawa-senpai did not answer as to who this 'Rion' person was. He supposed the question-and-answer session could wait since seeing his sister's welfare was more important.

With that conclusion, he watched as Kyoya-senpai knocked twice on the door before opening it. The room, in his view, could be considered a suite instead of a dingy hospital room that he had seen in commoner's television show. The first thing he noticed was Riku was sitting upright with her back leaning against a pillow; the second thing he noticed was the bandages wrapped around her head. There was also an IV stand that was dripping a bag of blood into her left arm while her other hand was holding on a television remote.

"Good afternoon, Riku. How are you feeling?" Nekozawa-senpai greeted smoothly as he walked into the room.

Hikaru let out a slight frown when he noticed how Riku perked up immediately when she heard Nekozawa-senpai. He inwardly shook away the feeling, and looked over to his sister who answered, "Umehito! I thought you were in London with Rion and the others."

"There was something Her Majesty ordered us to look into here in Japan. It seemed like you know what that is since you're here first," Nekozawa-senpai responded with a slight smirk as he walked over to her bedside. "And I received news from an Informa student regarding the accident. Shiki will be here momentarily as soon as he finishes investigating some things."

Riku did not say anything in response, which made him wonder if she knew what Nekozawa-senpai was speaking of. He was curious about who this 'Her Majesty', 'Shiki', and 'who or what Informa' are. Just as he was about voice his curiosity, the Black Magic Club's President pulled out a black box from his jacket and spoke in a calm tone that sent chills down his spine.

"Ah, I see," Riku remarked with a light chuckle as she put the remote back on the nightstand. Her gaze then landed on the black box with a frown, "Why are you taking _those_ out?"

"A better question would be: Riku, why are you still resisting the anesthesia?" Nekozawa-senpai stated as he opened the black box, revealing five syringes with different colored liquids in it.

"I'm not resisting it," Riku responded with a small scowl as her gaze lingered on the syringes for a few seconds. "You know why this kind of thing is happening to me. And why did you bring those out?" she repeated her question while she pointed out to the syringes with a rather wary look.

A cold smirk appeared on Nekozawa-senpai's expression as he snapped on a pair of surgical gloves, which Hikaru noted that it came from that small black box.

"Nekozawa-senpai, what are you planning to do?" Tamaki-senpai meekly asked from the sideline.

"Yeah, what are you planning to do with our sister?" he and Kaoru interjected as they tried to peer over the mentioned person's shoulders.

Hikaru was a bit irked when Nekozawa-senpai ignored them, and pulled out a syringe with sky blue liquid. "Stop resisting it, Riku. Otherwise, I will inject this to you and force the anesthesia to overwhelm you until every last bit of it is worn out from your body," he threatened in a calm tone. "You know it's unhealthy for you to resist that much anesthesia."

"What are you talking about Nekozawa-senpai?" Kyoya-senpai interrupted as he pushed his glasses upward.

The first thing Hikaru noticed was a forceful amount of anger in his sister's eyes; there were so much that he was taken back by the mere stare. The second thing he unconsciously noticed was how the room temperature sudden dropped until it felt as if he was standing in the freezer room. The third thing he noted was how Nekozawa-senpai seemed to be calm despite all these changes. The fourth thing he realized was Tamaki-senpai's teeth chattering sounds.

"Alright fine, be quick about it. You know I don't like shots, needles, whatever it is that you call _those_ things," the deathly calm tone in Riku's voice unnerved him. There was once again, the distant look in her eyes that Hikaru had saw plenty of times since her arrival.

"I'm sorry, Riku," that was all the Nekozawa-senpai gave before he pressed on a pressure point on her neck, instantly knocking her out. He then injected a syringe with sky blue liquid into her arm, and let out a deep sigh as he tossed the item in a nearby trash can.

"Now, would you mind answering our questions, Nekozawa-senpai?" Kyoya-senpai interjected with a business-like smile, showing that he was irritated by how he was ignored.

Nekozawa-senpai simply put away the black box back in his jacket, and looked back with a near exasperated expression. A contemplative expression passed by his visage, as if he was debating whether he should answer or not; but finally, he stated, "Depends on the question," as he leaned against the wall near the nightstand.

"Who or what did you mean when you said 'the King', 'the Queen', and 'the Rook' stuff earlier?" Hikaru blurted out as he narrowed his eyes at the older male, and added, "It sounded like chess pieces, if you ask me."

"I'm not at the liberty to tell you what those mean," Nekozawa-senpai responded in a solemn tone as he put his hands in his pocket, and continued, "However, I will tell you that the positions you discovered, Ootori-kun, regarding Riku's former school is simply not what you think it is. The only way you will find out is if you have done an unspeakable crime and we are ordered to move by Her Majesty."

"Her Majesty?" Haruhi voiced out in confusion.

Nekozawa-senpai nodded in response as he shifted his footing, and verbally said, "In other words, the Queen of England."

"Huh? Why would the Queen of England—" Haruhi started in puzzlement as she tilted her head to indicate her confusion.

"I've been wondering Nekozawa-kun," Honey-senpai cut in with curiosity laced in his tone, and when the mentioned person looked at his direction, he continued. "Why are you not wearing your cloak or wig like you usually do? I thought you have photophobia."

Instead of answering the question, the President of Black Magic Club merely gave a mysterious smile and shifted his gaze onto Riku. Wordlessly, he shifted his glance back to them and said, "I don't have photophobia, if that's what you're wondering. It's merely used to further enhance the mystification of the Black Magic Club; I mean, you've seen me walk around without them a few times before my helpers came in with those items."

"…What happened to Riku that made her overcome anesthesia?" Kaoru asked the question that had been lingering in the air since the talk with Ryo-sensei earlier.

Nekozawa-senpai ran a hand through his hair as he eyed at Riku once again, and then spoke in a low tone, "Have you heard of a move called 'Queen Sacrifice' in chess?"

"It's the act of a player deliberately sacrificing the queen, the most powerful piece, without recapturing the enemy queen or material of similar value in return, correct?" Kyoya-senpai answered without missing a beat as he pushed his glasses upward. When Nekozawa-senpai nodded in response, he continued, "What does chess have to do with this conversation?"

"I would have thought that you, of all people, would have connected the dots already," Nekozawa-senpai responded with a small sigh, and added, "If you haven't then, that's –"

Kyoya-senpai let out a noticeable twitch at the indirect insult, and immediately flipped open his notebook to a certain page. "'The King', 'The Queen', and 'The Rook' you spoke of earlier… they may have sounded like mere chess pieces, but they are, in fact, the positions you've held in Imperial Cavalier Academy. The Queen position is held by Riku; and from the 'Queen Sacrifice' move you spoke earlier… I can only conclude that something has happened. Correct?"

**x0x0x0x0x**

I let out a twitch when Umehito injected me with a familiar serum, the very serum that I frequently used to counteract against the anesthesia, sedatives, and paralyzers. As I succumbed to the medication, the numbness I had felt earlier in my body and the dull pain I felt on my head were quickly wearing off just as the darkness once again surrounded in my mind's eyes. I nearly smiled in my subconscious that the effects of the serum was that swift. It seemed he had infused his magic into the medication.

_"You are Ren, are you not?" _I heard a man's voice asked me.

I immediately looked around my premise, trying to locate the source of the voice, until I found myself looking a floating screen. In it showed a man, presumably in his thirties, talking to the auburn haired girl. She was dressed in a familiar Imperial Cavalier Academy uniform.

_"And you are Jack Marquise, the modern Jack the Ripper, correct?" she countered icily with a glare. _

_"You truly are one piece of fine work," he responded with a chuckle, not answering to her statement, and continued, "You will be my next addition to my collection. You should be proud, my dear; after all, not everyone gets this privilege." _

_"Go to hell, you bastard," the auburn haired girl retorted in the same tone. She then pulled out a handcuff from her jacket, and said, "Under Her Majesty's order, you are under arrest for 19 counts of murders." _

As suddenly as those images assaulted me, they disappeared and I found myself floating in the sea of darkness again. I could faintly hear murmurs of conversations even though I could not pinpoint the exact location of the source. Suddenly, I felt myself drowning deeper and deeper until I could feel the water subconsciously dancing across my skin.

'Wake up. _Wake_ up! WAKE UP!' my mind screamed.

I let out a loud gasp in startle as if I was jolt back to reality. I found myself staring at the white ceiling, trying to figure out why I dreamt that scene again. I inwardly shook my head to will myself to forget or at least think about it at another time. For now, I felt as if I had been sleeping for a prolonged period of time since I felt rejuvenated. It was as if I was not involved in a car accident. Oh, how I love that serum's effects.

"—from the 'Queen Sacrifice move you spoke earlier, I can only conclude that something has happened. Correct?" I heard Ootori-san asked.

Judging from that statement, I had a feeling I knew what they were talking about. I slowly sat up from my position once again, and said before Umehito could say something, "I suppose you could say that."

"Riku! Why are you up? You shouldn't overexert yourself," Kaoru-nii immediately fussed as he came over my bedside and looked at worriedly. I had a feeling he wanted to push me back down, but at the time, he looked like he was unsure whether he should do so or not.

"Don't worry; I'm fine," I insisted as convincingly as I could, and shifted my attention to Umehito. "And I suppose you aren't simply here to visit me just because I happened to land myself in this bloody hospital, do you?"

I looked at him with a pointed look as I pulled out of the IV drip from my arm and winced a bit as I did so. I probably should not have done that, but I was getting nauseous looking at the bag of blood and the needle in my arm.

"You saw right through me, as usual," he answered with a wry chuckle before he let out a dejected sigh. I raised an eyebrow at his action just as he said in Russian, "_Her Majesty wanted us to help the police investigate on the kidnapping of children; however, you already this, don't you? And I'm afraid to say this, but my dear Kirimi is one of the victims." _

"She's around four now, is she not?" I responded back in Japanese since my Russian skill is still lacking despite the fact that I could understand him. When Umehito nodded in answer, I placed a hand under my chin while my mind tried to filter through the list of known criminals that we had captured but was released recently through probations and/or bails. "Who is your main lead suspect?" I finally asked since my mind is still fuzzy from the drugs.

"Riley Johnson. He bought a ticket to Japan four days prior based on the records," he answered seriously.

"Wait a minute. What's going on?" Suoh-san interjected in frenzy, looking more confused by the second as he tried to follow our conversation.

I closed my eyes momentarily as I tried to remember (as best as I could) if I had seen Riley Johnson, the criminal who was notorious for kidnapping children and human-trafficking them. Our seniors had sent him to jail seven years ago, when I was nine-years-old; but it was not a surprise that he was released early. "As I thought; so he left on the same day as I," I muttered as I finally reopened my eyes, and continued with a frown, "Sorry, Umehito; I can't believe I didn't see him. If I had known…"

The Rook shook his head in response as if to say, 'It's alright', and verbally said, "You didn't know about it. It's okay; I hope you don't mind being in a supportive part of this investigation."

I merely gave a smile in answer as I shifted my glance to my brothers, who looked slightly peeved that they were ignored. "It's not like the Headmaster accepted my Dad's transfer letter, so accepting your offer will be a wise choice. Besides, I already knew this would happen. You know I don't 'move' without a plan," I shrugged with a chuckle. "In any case, we need to move fast since we don't know when he had 'checked'. First thing first, call Rion and Jeanne since we need their expertise in this case. Then compile the data you have based on his travel record you've found. We need to figure out where he's staying at, and see if he had moved. Also, I'd advise you to give Jeanne access to the security tapes in your compound to see if he has any accomplices."

"So it's not just the Rook and the Knight, but the whole Imperial Guardians, huh?" Umehito muttered with a sigh as he pulled out his cell phone to begin making the calls.

It seemed my brothers and the Host Club had heard his statement since some of them – mostly Suoh-san and my brothers – were looking at us with eyes widened. Judging by their expressions, it looked like they have finally figured out the story behind the Imperial Guardians, or at the very least, the importance of it.

"Really, we take eyes off you for a couple of days, and what do you do? You land yourself in the hospital, again," a familiar voice commented as the owner of the voice walked into the room. I shifted my attention to the newcomer, and let out a sheepish grin at the slightly long raven haired male. His amethyst colored eyes were looking at me with a mixture of exasperation and amusement even though I did not know how that was possible.

I narrowed my eyes at his comment but did not say anything since I knew that I would be saying something unnecessary that my brothers or the Host Club did not need to know. Like, something about… my suicidal tendency… It appeared as if my comrades knew the meaning behind my stare since they, too, did not say anything. After all, they knew that I behave differently when it comes to missions.

"I brought over a new set of clothes since I highly doubt you'll want to walk around in that hospital gown," Shiki stated cheekily as he tossed me a bag.

I easily caught the item, and looked inside, only to find myself staring at my Imperial Guardian uniform. Wordlessly, I took out the articles, and in one swift movement, I pulled the sheets over so that it was obscuring my body from everyone's view. In that handful of 'seconds' that I managed to obtain, I quickly shed my hospital gown and replaced it with a white blouse and black skort. Well, it was mostly due to Umehito's magic since he had stopped time so that I would be able to change my clothes.

When the sheets fell to the ground (and time resumed as per normal), I had just finished buttoning my blouse as I looked over to Shiki. "Thanks," I remarked in regards to the clothes he bought.

"Not a problem. I came here to inform you two that Jeanne had already found the most likely place he'll be in," he commented while I tied my necktie. "Kamikawa in Hokkaido," Shiki continued as he pulled out what it seemed to be a guidebook that he purchased a local bookstore. "According to my sources, or at least this handy book, the town prides itself on 'the most delicious ramen in Japan'. She wants to double check the information with you, Riku, before we begin moving."

"What are you guys talking about?" Hikaru-nii interjected with an annoyed frown, and continued as he looked over to my direction, "And you! Should you really be up and about?"

"Don't worry; I'm fine," I responded as if I had not been hit by a drunk driver an hour or so prior. I took off the bandage wrapped around my head, letting out a wince when I felt patches of dry blood. At least they have begun healing. I then said to Umehito, "I'll contact Jeanne when I get home, and ran by the information she found again."

"And we'll handle the necessary preparations," Umehito nodded in understanding.

"Do you want to interrogate the bastard when we capture him?" Shiki asked while I put on a pair of knee-high socks, and then a pair of black stiletto boots.

A smirk managed to make its way on my expression as I zipped my boots, and looked over to the raven haired male. "As tempting as the offer is, I'll have to decline this time. Just make sure he gets the maximum sentence for his crime. I'll send all the information as I have everything pieced together," I responded with a sigh when I noticed my brothers' confused expressions.

Ah, I love being in what I liked to call 'mission mode'; but it seemed I still have a lot of explanation to do. That really put a damper on the exhiliateration I get from dancing with danger.

* * *

><p><strong>Short Profiles of the Imperial Guardians (based on information revealed thus far): <strong>

**Alias:** Rion  
><strong>Real Name:<strong> -  
><strong>Position:<strong> The King

**Alias:** Ren  
><strong>Real Name:<strong> Riku Lucille  
><strong>Position:<strong> The Queen

**Alias:** -  
><strong>Real Name:<strong> Umehito Nekozawa  
><strong>Position:<strong> The Rook  
><strong>Special Ability:<strong> Black Magic

**Alias:** Jeanne  
><strong>Real Name:<strong> -  
><strong>Position:<strong> The Bishop (not revealed yet; but this information can be gained by the process of elimination)

**Alias:** Shiki  
><strong>Real Name:<strong> -  
><strong>Position:<strong> The Knight

* * *

><p><strong>Footnote:<strong> For those who were wondering about Nekozawa... The 'sudden cure' of being unafraid of light was taken from some of the scenes in the manga and anime where he _was_ able to withstand them without his wig and cloak. As for his ability to use magic, Tamaki did believed that he could curse, and Nekozawa himself stated that voodoo exist. I have merely expanded those in this story.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

**Note:** I rewrote this chapter so many times before I was satisfied with this one (sweat drops).

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed. In addition, a thank-you to Optimistic Dreamer for letting me use that memory scene.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 7: <span>

The ride home was turning out to be uncomfortable to say the least; but that was not my biggest worry since I have to find where Riley Johnson was hiding. I closed my eyes as I tried to filter through the information I had on him… at least, the information that I remembered, which was very minimum since I chanced upon it before my seniors caught me looking through them.

'Riley Johnson, 36 years old, and is previously sentenced for kidnapping and human-trafficking children,' my mind relayed the information.

I nearly chuckled at the difference in my personality if it were not for the seriousness of the situation. I supposed the change was due to the exhilaration I get from doing missions… the thrill of catching bad guys, and most of all, the thrill of dancing with danger and death. This sort of change always makes me wonder if I have some kind of personality issue… like, a dissociative personality type, for instance. I inwardly shook my head away from such thoughts since I have a more pressing issue at hand.

'Aside from finding out the bastard's whereabouts,' I silently interjected.

"So based on all the information I've gathered, I can only conclude that you are the Cavalier known as Ren," Ootori-san commented from across me.

I did not say anything in response to agree or disagree with his statement, and simply continued looking through a file I got from Shiki. It consisted of the bank activity, and recent credit card transaction of Riley Johnson. I briefly wondered how he managed to obtain this material in such a short amount of time; but I had not voice my inquiry out loud when I received the file.

"Why didn't you say anything, Riku?" Kaoru-nii asked from my right.

"We aren't exactly buddy-buddy, and we still aren't," I replied without tearing my gaze away from a bank statement. I flipped through another bank statement, quietly narrowing my eyes when I saw something suspicious. "Hmm… how did he manage to obtain that large sum of money in such short time…" I muttered under my breath as I pulled out a pen from my pocket and circled the numbers so that I would be reminded to investigate it later.

"You're the one who was held captive three years ago," Ootori-san continued with a smirk as if he was proud that he had managed to figure out that mystery.

I flicked my gaze onto him for a moment, silently daring him to continue to boast, and bitingly remarked, "Let me know if you'll still be proud when you're drugged every four hours, whipped and starved to near death, and then left to drown to die just because I am 'a Cavalier known as Ren'." As soon as those words left my mouth, I immediately quiet down; after all, I did not mean to reveal that much information but the words just flew out of my mouth before I even realized it.

"Riku…" Kaoru-nii murmured sullenly; but I did not say anything as I switched my gaze over to the recent credit card transactions. "Is that what happened in Seaford?" When I heard his inquiry, I reflexively looked up to meet his gaze but instead of giving a verbal response, I simply gave a wry smile as a certain memory came rushing back to me. It was the very memory that I had sealed away in the furthest corner of my mind these days.

**x0x0x0x0x**

_It was cold… very cold… in fact, it was colder than usual. It was chilling to the point that it felt as if ice was moving throughout my body, leaving everything numb in its wake before it twisted in pain. The pain was burning my flesh, yet at the same time, it was also cold from the windows left opened; and that in itself made it even worse. _

_I could not even make a sound to express the pain, which began to feel like all of the other previous experiments done unto me in the last couple of days. It was almost as if death was taunting me… pulling me in but releasing me in the last second. Strangely, I did not mind it as much as I should have. _

_This pain, however, was different than others I have felt even though it could not be explained correctly in words. It was licking at my insides tantalizingly, covering them with its contents. It was another drug injected into me earlier; that much was obvious, even though I was faintly aware of my surroundings. After all, as my body thrashed against the chains bounding me to the ceiling, the pain got even worse as it burned everything in its path. _

_Even through my hazed-like state, I knew that he was in the room… watching me… mocking me… rejoicing at my pain and the humiliation I felt… and ultimately, thinking of new ways to torture me. _

_The pain immediately started moving back up my body in a rapid movement, making it twice as painful before it reached to my legs. It refused to leave as it slowly began to spread throughout my body yet again… to my head, then to my fingertips, and even to the tips of my toes which barely touched the floor. _

_The pain was crushing me to the point that I felt suffocated while my vision darkened. It gradually enveloped everything I knew, hugging me comfortingly as it devoured all my senses until darkness became the only comfort I knew. _

**x0x0x0x0x**

Tense silence once again basked in the cramped limousine as I blinked out of my memory and redirected my gaze onto my papers, circling a few purchases that I found suspicious. It was an attempt to redirect my attention from the tense situation, and to force myself to be busy so that I would not think about what happened in Seaford. In any case, I found it strange that Riley Johnson would buy a complete tool set, and bags of dry concrete mix.

"Well," Suoh-san began with a frown marring his expression. When I paused to look up at his direction, he continued, "If you're not going to tell us about that, at least explain Nekozawa-senpai's position in this. I'm confused!"

I snapped shut the folder as I chuckled at his tone, and responded, "He's also a Cavalier, if you haven't already figured it out yet, and holds the position of the Rook."

"The Rook…?" Fujioka-san murmured in puzzlement as I leaned back against my seat.

I immediately covered my mouth before a small yawn could escape, and after a few seconds of silence, I responded, "The positions are like chess. The King position is held by Rion, the Queen by me, the Rook by Umehito, the Bishop by Jeanne, and the Knight by Shiki, whom you met earlier."

"So what do you guys do?" Hikaru-nii asked with an eyebrow raised.

I pursed my lips for a moment as I contemplated whether or not I should explain the whole thing to him. In the end, I decided to explain some things; after all, it was not as if they would have any use with this information. "Years ago, the Imperial Guardians are created to protect the Royal family, but Her Majesty decided to reform it so that it would match with the recent times. You can think of as a military academy of sorts. We also help the law enforcements with some of the toughest cases that the police has difficulty with. Of course, we are still invited to attend during important events for the Royal family when they host them."

"If that's the case then, we should have seen you during Prince Aidan's wedding a couple of months ago," Kaoru-nii pointed out with a slight frown, and added, "In fact, we also should have seen Nekozawa-senpai during the coverage; after all, there were cameras everywhere, and it was shown world-wide."

I merely chuckled in response before I gave them a smile. There were many things I could have said to his statement, but I decided not to 'shoot down their attempt to be friendly' and instead said, "I'd be surprise if you could see through our disguises and know who we are."

**x0x0x0x0x**

I let out a tired groan when I realized that the sun was peeking through my closed curtains. It seemed that time had passed way faster than I thought while I was working; and by working, I meant tracking down Riley Johnson, closing his accounts, and retracing the steps of his victims. It had taken me all night (I dozed off a few times in between), but luckily, I managed to gather all the necessary information so that Rion and others would be able to make their moves today.

I would have joined in on the fun, but there was only so much I could with a Remington Derringer that I managed to sneak in through the security. It was difficult as I was brought in for questioning; however, once I showed my Imperial Cavalier Academy ID card, the security team let me through. Nevertheless, it was not bad to be in the supportive position once in a while… even though that 'once in a while' has been three years now…

I stood up from my seat as I yawned, and sluggishly made my way to the adjacent bathroom. I paused in the midst of my track when I noticed my school bag, staring at it for a couple of minutes as I tried to remember if I had any homework or not. Another yawn escaped from my mouth, interrupting the staring contest, and I finally decided to shower first before I move on to a harder task… like, trying to remember if I had homework.

I stepped out of the bathroom twenty minutes later with an annoyed scowl when I realized that I have yet to complete my Math, Chemistry, _and _English homework. The latter would not be problematic, but the former two… I let out an annoyed twitch as that thought crossed my mind.

"I suppose I should do this to uphold my pretense for a little longer," I sighed as I quickly dressed in my uniform, and begrudgingly grabbed my book bag. I took out the necessary books and set my alarm so that it would ring thirty minutes before I have to set for school.

* * *

><p>It was a little passed seven o'clock by the time Riku came into the dining room, and much to his surprise, she was looking worn out as if she had just conquered something eminent. Kaoru looked over to him with a slight frown as his sister took a seat across from them, and face planted on the table. Hikaru inwardly raised an eyebrow at her haggard appearance, but did not comment on it.<p>

"Uh, Riku? Are you alright?" Kaoru hesitantly asked. He gulped down his nervousness when he did not receive any responses, but continued speaking, "We're sorry about yesterday," as he jabbed an elbow to his older twin to add something to the conversation.

"I, uh… didn't mean to go overboard… Sorry," Hikaru muttered as he looked everywhere but at Riku.

She looked up to meet their gazes, not saying anything for a few seconds as the staring contest ensued. There was an unreadable expression in her eyes that made Hikaru pondered what it meant before he noticed a flicker of sadness, which was quickly overridden indifference. Finally, she let out a sigh and said, "You really should watch what you say," as she covered her mouth before another yawn managed to escape.

"Can we start over?" Kaoru asked with a hopeful smile, looking over to his twin as he bit the bottom of his lips and then looked at Riku anxiously when she did not say anything.

"Look," he began with a sullen sigh as he ruffled his hair nervously. When Riku looked at him expectantly, he fidgeted with the cuff of his uniform as he tried to carefully word his speech, and finally said, "I shouldn't have said what I said… I was just mad. I mean, why would someone who hasn't been in our life for 10 years suddenly come back? You were someone who had taken all of the attention from us as a child, and for you to come back, I assumed that you probably came back to take all of that attention back."

"But you've changed… a lot, and you had to endure something unthinkable," Kaoru added softly.

Riku did not say anything as she sat up from her previous position, and ran a hand through her hair before she put it in a messy ponytail. A sad smile made its way on her expression, making him puzzle as to why she was looking at them like that and why she has not said anything in response.

Finally, she responded with a, "I hope you're not saying those because you found out a bit of my past, and pity me because of it. I mean… if you are, I'd rather you hate me rather than pity me."

"No, it's not because—" Kaoru immediately refuted frantically.

"I probably shouldn't have said that," Riku cut in as she shook her head, and added, "But starting over is impossible since I said beforehand that I will cut off you from my life for good if you ruined your chance."

"Are you really going to do that to us, Riku?" Kaoru murmured with a sullen expression that Hikaru had not seen on his brother before.

Riku paused momentarily as she looked at them, almost as if she was contemplating something. An unreadable expression appeared on her face before it was overwritten with a smirk as she said, "I suppose I should give you yet another chance just to see what you will do."

"Great! So why don't we have an outing or something?" Kaoru suggested with a smile, looking as if he had thought of something great.

Hikaru nodded in agreement to the idea, and said, "Yeah, that's not a bad idea. We have tomorrow off anyways because of some meeting the teachers have."

"Are you sure you don't want to stay at home today? You shouldn't overexert yourself, especially with what happened yesterday," Kaoru commented worriedly.

Hikaru had to admit that he was worried with how she had been yawning endlessly during the short period she has been in the room. In fact, he would even say that she looked like she was ready to fall asleep on her feet. This then made him wonder what she has been up to last night, specifically considering how she should be resting after that accident.

"You shouldn't worry about me," she answered with another yawn, and muttered a word of 'Thanks' to a maid who handed her a cup of something drink. She accepted the cup and began walking to the kitchen, all the while saying, "Let me know when and where if you have figured it out."

There was something in her tone that Kaoru had a difficulty figuring it out. It was akin to smugness and teasing, almost as if she was testing them. In the end, he brushed it off and concluded that he was reading too much in this matter.

**x0x0x0x0x**

Hikaru could not help but sweat drop when he noticed that Riku slept through in all of the classes they have been together. From the time she walked in to the classroom and sat down in her seat, she instantly put her head on the table and slept. The only time she woke up was when the teacher called on her to answer an English question written on the board. He, the rest of the class, and the teacher were surprised when Riku wrote down the correct answer since he was quite positive that she was knocked out from the rest of the world. After that kind of incident happened in every class, the teachers did not even bother to call on her again.

He and Kaoru were about to wake her up after the last bell rang when she slowly sat up, and rubbed her eyes. She then stood up from her seat and stretched her arms above her head.

"Classes are over, huh?" Riku muttered as she brought down her arms. It was then that Hikaru noted how different she looked compared to how she was in the morning. She looked more refreshed after a few hours of sleep.

"You practically slept through all of it," he pointed out, and sighed when Riku shrugged in response. "In any case, are you coming with us to the Host Club? We're going to talk about what we are going to do tomorrow."

"Hmm," Riku thoughtfully hummed as she eyed at him and Kaoru for a moment. "Probably not. I'm not a part of the club anyway," she answered with a shrug. Wordlessly, she picked up her book bag and left the classroom while she pulled her hair tie, releasing her hair from its high ponytail.

"We'll see you at home then," Hikaru and Kaoru shouted to her retreating figure; but they did not receive a response. With a defeated sigh, he and his twin began heading to the Third Music Room.

* * *

><p>After wandering around the hallways for a while, I stopped by a nearby loo. I bent over the sink and splashed cold water on my face a few times, trying to get rid of the sleepiness even though I had slept in nearly all of my classes. I have a feeling that the drowsiness and the throbbing headache in the back of my mind were due to the anesthesia dosages that I had been injected with yesterday. I splashed water on my face a few more times before I took out my handkerchief and wiped my face. When I stared at my reflection, I noticed a couple of wet spots on the front of my uniform but decided to ignore that as I could not help but realize that the girl in the mirror seemed so different from myself.<p>

I shook my head to discard that thought, and told myself that I could think about such things at another time. After all, the current mission is more important than my…thoughts. I quickly gathered my hair and put it in a high ponytail, leaving some strands of my hair to frame my face since they were a bit shorter than the rest to be put into a ponytail.

I pocketed my handkerchief into my book bag, and began heading out of the campus. I pulled out my cell phone from my pocket, pulling up the last text message I received while I was in class, and furrowed my brows as I read the contents.

_"Have arrived to Kamikawa, Hokkaido; currently trailing after the target… heading towards Mount Tomuraushi now." _

I frowned at the message and typed 'Be careful. Do you want me to head up there to help?' before I sent the message. Based on the information I had read about the Kamikawa district, Mount Tomuraushi happened to be one of the 100 famous mountains in Japan, and that recent hikers died during their hike to this mountain.

A beeping noise interrupted my trail of thoughts, and when I looked down at my cell phone, I noticed, _"It's alright, we got this. If any problem arises, we will contact you immediately. In the meantime, please prepare the materials for our next mission when you receive the information." _

"And the fun begins," I chuckled in amusement as I replied to the message with, _"Alright, I understand." _

When I looked up to survey my surrounding, I noticed that I was in front of the Third Music Room, and silently wondered how I ended up here. My thoughts were interrupted when I heard some voices speaking from within, and decided to listen for a moment to hear what they were talking about.

"—basically, Ren from the Imperial Guardians with her unchallenged title of the Queen is, in fact, Riku herself. She has worked with London Metropolitan Police Department to catch criminals ever since she entered the Imperial Cavalier Academy, and is known to give evidences the Magistrate need to impose maximum sentence to the offenders," I heard Ootori-san say.

I raised an eyebrow in somewhat amusement while I silently wondered how he managed to come across that information. It was not something a Japanese citizen would know seeing as the knowledge regarding the Imperial Guardians was kept within the law enforcement personnel.

Nonetheless, I ignored their conversation and walked away from the door. I had other things to worry about rather than musing about how the Host Club has gotten the information regarding myself and the Imperial Guardians. If they wanted to find out about me, they could do so; after all, it was not the first time that someone had taken interest about me. I just hoped he would not go as far as the last person had been.

**x0x0x0x0x**

I closed the door behind me and walked over to my closet to change out of my uniform. A moment later, I headed over my desk dressed in a comfortable black tank top and a pair of black and white running shorts. I pulled out a manila folder from my desk, and turned on my laptop while I took a seat in front of it.

I really dislike paperwork portion of the missions. I find it mundane and too detail-orientated; however, as per Imperial Cavalier Academy's rule, it was necessary. I received a call earlier from Rion stating that they have arrived at the mid-way of Mount Tomuraushi and that they were on their way to locating Riley Johnson. Really, why must they rub it in my face that I am stuck doing the deskwork?

I let out a sigh as I began typing the report, filling out the basic information about the mission. I paused in mid-way when I reached to the details of the mission, and leaned back against my chair, swirling around a few times as I stared at the ceiling.

"I wonder how I'm going to tell them that I'll have to return back to London if my next mission isn't here in Japan," I muttered to no one in particular.

When I did not receive a response, not that I had expected one, I laughed at the irony of my situation. I had come to Japan with the sole purpose to complete this mission, which I had anticipated when I noted Riley Johnson's suspicious behaviors during his parole hearing. Originally, I wanted to pass off this mission to my comrades, and file a leave of absence just to be able to get away from all of this.

However, since my Dad had practically ordered me to come live with my Mom, and had even went as far as to call her to ensure that I would do so, I had no choice but to come here. Although I do tend to plan most things to go my way, there were also things that I cannot predict; one of which was when Dad found out that I really am an S-Ranked detective… hence a part of the reason why I was here. This had meant that I had to tweak my plan so that I would be able to finish my mission, and still ensure that no one would find out that I am an Imperial Guardian so that they would be involved in this dangerous yet tantalizing tango with death. Of course, we all knew how the latter turned out, right? But I did not mind it; after all, it made things more interesting.

I swirled around my seat once more, silently wondering how my comrades were doing with their mission. I nearly jumped in startled when I heard a loud melody from my laptop that indicated that I have gotten a new mail.

"Well then, well then, this decides our next fate," I muttered under my breath as I swirled to a stop, and pulled my chair closer to the table. A familiar ringtone interrupted me just as I was about to open the mail, and I could not help but let out a small twitch at my cell phone as it cried out:

_"I really want to be with you__  
><em>I really want to, really want to be with you<em>  
><em>Cause you're my love, you're my shine, you're my—"<em>_

I flipped open the device, cutting of its melody, and said, "Hello? …Ah, Rion, perfect timing. How goes the mission?"

* * *

><p>Yuzuha blinked in surprise when she heard someone knocking on the door, silently wondering who it could be, considering that she was not expecting anyone and that she had told the maids not to disturb her unless it was important. Nonetheless, she gave the person permission to enter, and was startled to find her daughter quietly entering into the room.<p>

She subtly eyed at Riku's attire, and wondered why she was dressed to go out. In fact, she remembered the day when her daughter first arrived, Riku was dressed in a similar outfit consisting of a white blouse, a pair of black slacks, a black calf-length blazer, and a pair of black heels.

"Mom," Yuzuha could not help but raise a delicate eyebrow at the seriousness in her daughter's tone.

"Have a seat, dear," she responded gently, and gestured to a white sofa near her work desk. "It's been a while since we've talked," she continued.

Riku's expression softened somewhat at the second statement as she sat down, and then looked over to say, "Yes, it has, hasn't it?"

"What's on your mind, sweetie?" Yuzuha asked as she fully turned around. Her eyes subtly widened when she saw a gun hostler vest over Riku's white blouse; but when she blinked and looked over once more, she noticed that Riku's trench coat has covered the view.

"I came to tell you that I'm leaving for London tonight," the younger girl confessed in a serious tone.

"W-what? Why?" Yuzuha immediately responded, shoving the thought of the hostler vest in the back of her mind, and added, "Is it because of your brothers?"

An unreadable expression appeared on Riku's visage before it melted into a small smirk, and she said, "Partly, but that's not it, Mom." The fashion designer opened her mouth to ask for an elaboration; however, her daughter cut in with a resigned, "I think you, of all people, at least deserve to know the truth."

"The truth?" Yuzuha echoed in confused as she eyed the younger girl, inwardly wondering what that could mean.

**x0x0x0x0x**

I gulped down my nervousness when I noticed my mother's confused yet scrutinizing gaze. I bit the inside of my cheeks as I gathered my courage, and took out my identification card from the inside of my blazer before I laid down the card on the coffee table.

"I am a student of Imperial Cavalier Academy," I began as I clenched my hands on the material of my pants, and continued when she did not say anything, "It's an academy that trains its students to be secret police officers, detectives, and the like. We are given permission to carry weapons, and conduct actions like actual the police forces. I am one of the highest ranked students there."

When my mother did not say anything but pick up my identification card, my heart began beating faster to the point that I could hear its thumps in my ears. Finally, Mom placed the item back on the coffee table, and said, "…I've known for a while, Riku… I also know about the fact that you're Ren Kisaragi. I was the one who researched about it back when Kazu told me when you wanted to enroll into this school, actually. I didn't know why you wanted to enroll there; but you were so determined about it that there wasn't anything we could do."

I looked at my mother in shock, not knowing what to say; however, I let out a smile when I came to realize that for once, things were not happening according to my plan… and I actually did not mind. "I see…" I whispered with a smile still on my face, and added, "Then this will make things easier for me."

"What's the real reason why you returned here?" Mom asked solemnly with a small frown marring on her youthful-looking complexion, and immediately added, "It's not because I don't want you here, because I do. It's just… you haven't even returned once since you left. Even Kazu returns every now and then… but you…"

I leaned back against my seat as I looked at the ceiling, fully aware of the fact that my mom was looking at me. I let out a quiet sigh before I closed my eyes momentarily and reopened them as I said, "Truthfully, I came here because of a mission to track down a criminal. You see, we undertake these missions to gather our field experiences for when we actually do become law enforcers for the elite families."

"…You look like you enjoy what you do, even though it's very dangerous," Mom commented with a sad smile.

"I am," I answered with a small smile redirected at her direction.

"There is a chance that you could die, Riku," she continued with a frown, and added, "We don't know what we'll do when that happen. In fact, we don't want that to happen to you."

I simply gave her a smile in response before I quietly responded with a, "I know, Mom. But please… don't worry about me." I did not have a heart to tell her that I had sought for those near-death thrills in each mission that I had performed.

"Can't you quit, Riku?" Mom sounded desperate as she looked pleadingly at me. "What about the twins? Aren't you going to tell them that you're leaving?"

"I'm not quitting," I answered firmly as I crossed my legs, and continued even though my mother looked crestfallen at my response. "As for the twins… they can find out about it once I have left."

"They are going to look for you, you know," she pointed out in a knowing tone, and when she gave me a pointed look, I simply raised an eyebrow.

I let out a dry chuckle at her reply, and stated, "Did you really think that I expect them to fly across countries to find me when they couldn't… rather, _wouldn't_ find me during a simple game of 'hide-and-seek'? They've locked me in a broom closet, Mom. And let's not forget about the time when they drowned me in the family pool at our summer villa."

"They've grown up, Riku," Mom replied quietly as she gave me a sadden look that I had no idea what it was for. "They truly regretted what they have done in the past, and truly want to make up with you."

I narrowed my eyes at her response, and resisted the urge to scoff since I knew that it would be rude. In the end, I let out a calculating smile, and finally said, "Whether or not they've grown up as you said… shall we put that to a test?"

"A test?" my mom echoed with a look that said she still disapproved of my actions.

I simply ignored that expression to the best as I could, and nodded to her inquiry. "Yes, a test," I responded as I ran a hand through my hair, "It will be a test to prove themselves to see if they truly want to make up with me, and to see if they care about me… even when they know about me… about Ren Kisaragi."

My mom did not say anything for a while, but after a couple of minutes, she let out a sigh and said, "I don't know what you're planning; but you know it can backfire on you when they find out that you're testing them."

"Yes, I know," I answered simply since a part of me was expecting her to say that.

"Then why do you do it?" she asked with a wary look crossing on her expression. When I opened my mouth to answer, my mom shook her head, and instead said, "No, a better question would be… _Why_ are you doing this?"

I did not say anything as I contemplated what I should tell her. I had been expecting her to ask me that… really, when that question came, my mind instantly went blank. Silently, I glanced over to my mother, who was looking at me expectantly as I bit the bottom of my lips.

In the end, I decided to go with the truth since she deserved that much… after all, she was one of the few people who did not deserved to be played by this 'Queen'.

"I'm afraid to trust them again because they are the reason why I became the person I am today…" I answered in a soft tone, and then stood up from my seat as I glanced at my watch. "I'm afraid we will have to stop our conversation at this point. Take care of yourself, Mom."

"…Will you be coming back, Riku?" I heard Mom asked me as I walked towards the door. Instead of giving her a proper response, I merely flashed a smile at her direction before I left the room.

* * *

><p>The first thing Kaoru noted when he and Hikaru returned home in the evening was how quiet the house seemed. Although it has always been quiet even when Riku was home, Kaoru could not help but question the unsettling feeling he felt in the pits of his stomach. It was weird since it was similar to the feeling he felt when his twin has disappeared during that Halloween event. He shared a look with Hikaru, and shook off the disquieting feeling before the two proceeded upstairs.<p>

"Kaoru, are you alright?" his twin asked with a slight frown on his expression.

"I'm fine, Hikaru. It's nothing," he responded with a smile to reassure his brother. However, he could not help but felt that he was, in a way, trying to reassure himself more than anything.

When he passed by Riku's bedroom, he noticed that the doors were slightly ajar, which was weird considering how she usually kept the doors closed. Kaoru shifted his gaze to his twin before he moved to peek into the room to see why she would leave the doors opened.

"Riku, are you there?" Kaoru inquired as he knocked on the door a couple of times before he and Hikaru burst into the room.

Silence, however, met their ears as they looked around the room. He noticed that nothing seemed to be out of place as everything was neatly organized, almost as it seemed to look before Riku came to occupy this room. He looked over to his brother who had just came out of an adjacent bathroom while indicating that she was not in that mentioned room either.

"Where could she be?" Hikaru muttered in a low tone.

**x0x0x0x0x**

"Mom, where is Riku? The maids can't find her anywhere in the house, and we didn't see her in her room either," Kaoru asked with a frown on his expression.

"Kaoru… Hikaru… I'm afraid she left to go back to England earlier," his mother responded with a sullen look in her eyes.

"What!" he looked over to his left when his twin let out an outburst, and looked down at his feet as he silently wondered if the reason she had left was because of them.

He found it weird how she seemed detached even when she said she would give them another chance to prove themselves. It was almost as if she was not attempting to make an effort to get to know them again.

"If we leave now, we just might be able to catch her plane," Hikaru stated in a hurry while dragging him out the door.

"Hikaru, by now… she's on her way to London since she said she'll be taking one of her friends' jets," Yuzuha replied with a soft sigh.

"Then did she accept our offer to start over knowing that she was going to leave?" Kaoru could not help but wonder out loud; however, he did not receive an answer from his twin or his mother.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 8: <span>

I shook away an uneasy feeling that had been bothering me since I boarded the jet as I walked down a terminal in the airport, and dispassionately passed through the security systems without a problem. I pocketed my Cavalier identification card as we walked through the terminal heading to an area where we had stored our vehicles.

I pulled out my wallet to pay the storage fee while mentally trying to calculate how much it would end up, and in the end I took out my credit card. I glanced over my right, and noticed that Rion and Shiki were doing the same thing. When I looked back at the booth to see the cost, I nearly winced when I saw £141.60 flashing on the screen.

Really, I could not help but think that we – the Cavaliers – are fueling the economy since we tended to travel a lot for our missions. The good news, on the other hand, was that we did not have to pay for congestion charges. Nonetheless, I paid the amount shown, and pocketed my credit card and receipt before I followed Rion and Shiki to the storage area. Those two had decided to travel with me instead of staying behind with Umehito for a couple more days.

Umehito had decided to remain in Japan with his sister, Kirimi, who had been hospitalized with other victims in the Riley Johnson case. She was still unconscious when I visited her before I boarded the jet, and according to Ryo-sensei, she would most likely wake up in the next couple of days. As for the man who had caused this incident, he committed suicide when he met my comrades; I bet it was because he knew he would be behind bars for years to come.

Jeanne, however, had remained at the Academy since one of us needed to stay behind to watch our subordinates, and to protect the Royal family, if necessary. In addition, she is a part of Information Gathering Division and Investigative Research Division; hence, unlike us who are in the frontline, she is in the supportive position.

Well, I have been shoved to the supportive position for three years now since Ayame-sensei did not trust me using my weapons without hurting myself. I could not help but think that she still held that fact over my head… the fact that I had tried to stab myself with my knife multiple times after the incident at Seaford.

"It's about 30 minutes to the Academy, anyone want to race?" Shiki's mischievous tone interrupted my thoughts.

"I would bet that you tweaked your vehicle so that it would be faster than average," Rion grumbled as he put his hands in his pockets, and shot an annoyed looked towards the raven haired male.

Shiki laughed in response at the King's look and said, "Well, you got me. But if I know you like I think I do, I bet you tweaked yours too."

"Race or not, we have a meeting with the Headmaster, and I rather we're not late," Rion cut in as he cleared his throat, and walked towards his midnight amethyst colored motorcycle with an insignia of Imperial Cavalier Academy in the rear part of the vehicle. The insignia consisted of a crown with a sword clashing with a gun in front, and the words 'Imperial Cavalier Academy' circling around the emblem.

"Well, count me out of your silly game," I remarked as I walked over to my midnight amethyst colored motorcycle. The difference between Rion and my vehicles happened to be the symbol of our rank underneath the insignia. In fact, all the Imperial Guardians have our title's symbol to differentiate our belongings from each other's.

"Come on, we don't have time to idle around," Rion interjected as he started the engine, and revved his vehicle a couple of times.

I merely shook my head at his impatience and started my motorcycle before I put on my helmet. Shiki muttered something under his breath as he boarded his motorcycle, and followed my example. I distinctly heard him saying about us being a joy killer and Mr. Grumpy Puss, but I could have heard it wrong under the loud noises of our vehicles.

**x0x0x0x0x**

I pulled my motorcycle to a stop when I arrived in front of a four-story modern looking castle-like building that seemed to come out of some science-fiction novel. The outer shell of glass windows made it seem as if the building was fragile and could crumble at any moment under pressure. However, I knew that it was not true since it could withstand raining bullets and still manage to be able to make it out in one piece. Trust me, I tested that theory a few times when I first came to the Academy – albeit accidentally – when I misfired my guns and the bullets flew to those windows, and I got weeks' worth of detention afterwards.

Once we finished parking our vehicles, the three of us walked down the hallway while we ignored other students who parted from our way. The only thing that slightly annoyed me was when my fellow classmates bowed down to me as if I am some kind of royalty… well, given my title, I suppose I _am_ in a way; but it felt weird to see my seniors lowering their heads to me.

Before I knew it, we arrived to a pair of walnut oak doors that seemed out of place in a high-technology building. Rion knocked on the door a couple of times, and when we heard a low, "Come in," from within, he opened the doors. The room itself was large, probably due to the large bay window that overlooked the campus. Even though it was not my first time to be in Headmaster's office, I still found it weird that he was playing mini-golf every time I came into the room. Really, does he not have anything else to do?

"Is there something you need to discuss with us, sir?" Rion asked in a serious tone that indicated that he was not beating around the bush.

The Headmaster, a man in his early thirties, paused in his activity and walked over to his desk. He put down his golf club, and picked up three manila folders before he turned around to say, "Take a seat, you three."

I glanced over to Rion and Shiki for a moment, noticing the latter shrugged at the command. Nonetheless, we took a seat on a black sofa and waited for the Headmaster to say something.

"There are some new missions that came to my attention," he began solemnly as he took a seat across from us, and placed three manila folders on the coffee table. "First of all, these are your next missions... they're not that difficult, and you should be able to get them done before next Friday. Secondly, do you guys remember Jack Marquise?"

"You mean the modern Jack the Ripper?" Shiki commented with his brows furrowed. He then leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and his hands clasped as he placed his chin on top of his hands. "Her Majesty ordered death penalty on him, and he died last week. So what's the problem?"

"Yes, that's correct," the Headmaster responded with a nod, and added, "However, it seemed he informed his underlings regarding his plans before his death, and they are now out to seek revenge on his death by commencing the 'Lady Killer' plan in his stead, starting with Ren."

I took a sharp intake when I heard the news, and suddenly, I felt as if my mind went blank. I was vaguely aware of an immediate decrease in room temperature; but I snapped out of my stupor when I felt someone holding my hands.

"Don't worry; there won't be a repeat of what happened last time," I heard Rion stated from my right as he squeezed my hand. When I looked over to his direction, he gave me a reassuring smile.

"Yes, what happened last time was rather unfortunate, and miscalculation on our part," the Headmaster stated with a sullen tone, and cleared his throat before he continued in a serious tone, "That's why I have a plan I would like to propose, and I require your complete cooperation in this matter so everything will go smoothly."

"What's your plan, sir?" I could not help but ask before my comrades had a chance.

"I propose that we make Ren Kisaragi completely disappear from the world," the Headmaster responded in a solemn tone to indicate that he was serious. "I'm afraid we will have to use the 'Queen Sacrifice' move yet again to find our real target."

"I object!" Rion cried out as he stood up from his seat, and gave a heated glare towards the Headmaster.

Shiki's expression twisted into an angry expression while he glared at the older man, and stated, "We can't do that to Riku. We can't let her die, Headmaster; she's important to us."

I could not help but be touched by the fact that they cared about me, even though they had only known me for four years. Nonetheless, I redirected my attention to the matter at hand, and contributed to the conversation, "I don't mind being sacrificed."

"But!" my comrades protested as they immediately shifted their gazes onto me.

"It's fine, you two," I responded calmly, and when I noticed that they were about to protest, I added, "It's better if I disappear off everyone's radar for good for the sake of this mission. Besides… the Headmaster said 'Ren Kisaragi', not 'Riku Lucille'," On a side note, this could also serve as a test to my brothers to see how far they will go to try and save me.

"That's correct," the Headmaster replied with a nod of approval at my deduction, and added, "For now, I'd advise Riku to fly back to Japan, and stay with her family for the time being. You will be in the frontline again, so this time… Be sure to bring your weapons to protect yourself. Your teammates will be handling different missions while you try to lure out the 'Lady Killer'."

I gave a solemn nod of understanding and verbally said, "I understand, sir."

"In the off case that something does happen," he continued in a grave tone as he looked at my direction, "You will have to protect your family from 'Lady Killer's' attacks as well."

"Don't worry sir, I am well prepared to counter his attacks," I responded with a smirk forming at the corner of my lips. "I'm not the same helpless person as I was three years ago. If needed, do I have your permission to kill?"

* * *

><p>I let out a tired groan as I dragged my two big luggage behind me as quietly as I could, considering it was well over five in the morning and there was no one around yet. To be truthful, it was scary considering there could be <em>anyone<em> lurking around those trees, corners, and bushes. I really should not have watched a horror film while on the jet; but since the vehicle was owned by Umehito, there was not anything I could do. The weirdo actually likes horror films.

Yes, I was back in Japan since I took the first flight back so that we… more like _I_… could begin with our plan to lure our enemy. Of course, I being the bait since I am his target; but I did not mind since this could also serve as my test to my brothers. Well, the test could wait while I steeled my nerves to face the unknowns in the darkness… even though a rational side of me was stating that there was nothing in the darkness.

"If I stay out here any longer, I might as well die of a heart attack or something. I could have sworn there _is_ something hiding in that bush," I muttered under my breath as I stared at the looming front gates of the Hitachiin mansion. I then silently debated if I should ring the bell and wake up everyone or take a more quiet approach and break in.

In the end, I went with approach option two, and took out my multi-purpose butterfly knife that also served as a lock-pick. In a matter of a few seconds, I heard a satisfied click that indicated the lock was unlocked. I mentally noted to fix the gate and its security system later as I walked in, making sure to close it afterwards.

I immediately froze when I heard loud noises of the trees rustling, and gulped down nervously as I listened to the eerie sound. "Kumataro… did you hear that?" I whispered frantically in a hushed tone to the luggage on my left.

"Young Miss, who is 'Kumataro'?" an older male's voice spoke from behind me.

I instantly let out a scream when I heard the voice, and felt a hand on my right shoulder. In the back of my mind, I knew I should not have watched that horror movie even though it was so captivating and interesting at the time.

**x0x0x0x0x**

Kaoru was startled awake when he heard a scream from somewhere outside, and let out a scowl when he noticed that he was shoved off the bed… again. He uncharacteristically glared at his older twin, who was waking up in their comfortable bed with their blanket draped over while he was left to sleep on the cold floor. How unfair.

"Did you hear that, Kaoru?" Hikaru muttered as he tried to rub away the sleep in his eyes, and let out a yawn as he got out of bed.

"It came from the front yard," Kaoru responded while he slipped on a T-shirt, and tossed another one to his twin. "Come on," that was all he said as he headed towards the mentioned location.

When he arrived to the front yard, he noticed his mother and some of the maids were staring at the scene in shock. It was then that he heard a distinctive thud, and when he looked over, he noticed that their gardener was pummeled to the ground by a chestnut haired girl. Kaoru blinked in confusion as he tried to figure out why the chestnut haired girl looked so familiar.

"Riku?" his mother murmured in a tone that was loud enough for him, and the others to hear her.

"Eh? That's Riku?" Hikaru inquired in a baffled tone.

Kaoru blinked in an equally surprised manner as he stared at the girl who, according to his mother, is Riku. For one, her auburn colored waist-length hair was cut to her mid-back and dyed chestnut brown. Secondly, he could not help but notice that there was not any 'stand-away-from-me' aura that he originally felt with Riku.

"Riku honey, did our gardener do something to you?" his mother inquired in a somewhat wary tone. "And I thought you went back to London," she continued while giving a pointed look towards the maid to return to their duties.

"Ah, sorry to wake you up, Mom; he just startled me by appearing out of nowhere," she answered with a sheepish smile, and then sent a searing glare towards the mentioned garden when their mother was not looking. "There was a change of plan, so I'll be here for a while. I even bought Kumayuki… although the security guy at the airport gave me a funny look when Kumayuki passed through the X-ray machine."

The second phrase was added in a low tone while Kaoru simply sweat dropped when he heard her. He cleared his throat, and said, "Hikaru and I were going to fly to London to look for you."

"Oh, really?" Riku responded in an amused tone as she approached to where they were standing while some of the maids tended to her luggage. "In any case, you guys should really upgrade your security system. I managed to break my way in effortlessly, and I was half-sleep."

"I'll keep that in mind," his mother nodded in response before she excused herself.

He, on the other hand, simply stared at his sister while he was inwardly screaming, 'Break in? _Break_ in? Why would she BREAK IN?'

Riku let out a yawn as she followed his mother's example, and gave a slight wave towards him and Hikaru without looking at their direction.

"And the game begins now," Kaoru heard his sister muttered to no one in particular as she ascended upstairs. He inwardly could not help but wonder what she meant while he stared at her retreating figure. His eyes widened in surprised when she pulled at her hair, revealing that the new hairstyle was a wig, which she gave to a maid that she walked passed by.

He gave a knowing look towards his brother before they followed her upstairs, and went back to their bedroom to change out of their pajamas. Wordlessly, they headed back to Riku's room once they were done, and knocked on the door a couple of times.

"Riku, we need to talk," he and Hikaru spoke in unison, and waited for her to open to door.

* * *

><p>I walked back into my bedroom, changed into a puff-sleeve keyhole pale pink T-shirt, and a pair of gray drawstring sweatpants, when I heard my brothers' voices outside my room. I contemplated whether I should accept their offer to talk or to pretend that I was already asleep. In the end, I went with the former choice since this could be the opening move to begin with my test to them.<p>

I opened one of the doors, and nodded to them to indicate that I had accepted their offer as they walked into the room. Out of all the seats available in the room, they chose to sit on my bed; while I brought one of my lounge chairs near the bed, and sat down while hugging the throw pillow close to me.

"So…" I began resignedly, and glanced over to Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii, and continued, "What is it that you want to talk about?" even though I had a feeling that we were going to talk about our relationship, or lack thereof.

"Like we were saying yesterday," Kaoru-nii began as he shifted in his seat a couple times. It was almost as if he did not know what to say, but nevertheless managed to continued, "We want to rebuild our relationship. I mean, you're our sister; and it feels awkward that almost every time we talk, we're in some sort of disagreement."

"Besides," Hikaru-nii stated as he ruffled his hair in a nervous manner. "Not that I should be saying this, but 10 year is a long time to hold a grudge. What we are trying to say that, can we start over? We'll properly make it up to you, so please don't toy with us."

"There is no restart in life," I began as I stood up from my seat, placing the throw pillow back on the lounge chair, and walked over to a large bay window nearby. I could feel my brothers starting at me even without turning around to face them. Wordlessly, I drew the curtains close as I continued with what I had to say, "This can also mean that there are no do-overs; you only get one chance to live. Whether you manage to live that life successfully or unsuccessfully is up to the choices you make. What I'm saying is… everything you do have consequences but whether those consequences are good or bad ones depend on what kind of moves you make."

Silence passed by us as I turned around to face them. Kaoru-nii bit the bottom of his lips with a look that indicated that he was trying to figure out something while Hikaru-nii knitted his brows and let out a frown.

"…Are you saying that we don't have a chance at all?" the two tentatively asked in unison.

I would not admit it out loud, but that twin speaking-at-the-same-time thing was unnerving. I ran a hand through my straightened hair before I pulled it into a half-ponytail. "No, I haven't said anything of that sort, have I?" I began with a light chuckle, amused by the sudden startled expressions on their face, and then asked in a serious tone, "But if I gave you guys yet another chance, how would I know that I can trust you two?"

"We'll prove to you that you can trust us," they answered at the same time.

I folded my arms across my chest, and drummed my right finger on my cheek as I looked the two with my lips set in a thin line. I almost felt apologetic for their anxious expressions; however, I shoved that feeling aside as I thought about the matter at hands. After a couple of minutes of utter silence, I let out a long sigh while I leaned against the wall near the balcony, and said in a deadpanned tone, "That's what you said when we were young, before you left me to drown in the family pool. I could've died then, and again at Seaford because of what you two did to me."

"We —" Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii began, but I gave them a pointed look that promptly silenced them.

"What about the time you two locked me in a broom closet? If a maid hadn't come by to get the supplies, who knew how long I would have been in there? Oh, and how about the time when you left me at the mall when Mom was checking the inventory of her designs? I was almost kidnapped, you know," I recalled bitterly and clicked my tongue annoyingly at the memories.

"Now, that one was an accident. It was summer sales time, and there were a lot of people," Hikaru-nii rebutted, and continued, "We didn't leave you, we got separated."

I narrowed my eyes at his response, inwardly chuckling when he gulped in a nervous manner, and retorted, "Then why did it take you over three hours to find me when you knew where I was?" I let out a triumphant smirk when they did not say anything in response, and simply let the silence filled the room.

I walked across the room, and pressed some commands on the control panel, watching the curtains slid over the glass doors automatically. I then heard Hikaru-nii spoke in a low tone, "You must be strong and brave to be attending the Imperial Cavalier Academy."

"What are you getting at?" I asked with an eyebrow raise and looked at them with my arms casually crossed.

"I know that you put on a brave face to mask a broken one caused by us," Kaoru-nii continued as he stood up from his seat, and walked towards me with his brother. When they were a little less than two feet away from me, he continued, "But you were sweet and gentle, and we simply thought it was just an act. Please, Riku… forgive us?"

I seriously did not know whether I should laugh or let the awkward silence continue; but nonetheless, I cleared my throat to say, "…Wow. That has to be the most cliché speech I have ever heard. Seriously, did you guys make that up on the spot, or was it planned all along? It's annoying to listen to such a sappy thing." I paused momentarily to run a hand through my hair, and smirked when I noticed shocked expressions on my brothers before I continued, "…Maybe this is the 'sweet and gentle' Riku talking, but I will admit that it struck a small chord. Alright, let's see how you'll prove yourselves."

"You won't regret this, Riku," Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii said in unison with a large smile.

I normally would not have 'forgiven' them that quickly even though this would be their third time to ask for my forgiveness. However, this would be the fastest way to get them to play my game… or rather, to have them to take on my test.

"You're not toying with us, are you?" Hikaru-nii immediately inquired with his eyes narrowed in suspicion. "After all, with what happened to us the last two times…" he trailed off with a scowl.

"Of course not," I answered truthfully with a light chuckle, silently amused by how he was suspicious of my actions. If this was a game, he would definitely scored a point for somewhat understanding who I really am. "I'll let you two prove yourselves; although I'm not sure how you will go about this… that's something you'll have to figure out yourselves."

A weird silence filled in the room while I opened my luggage containing my Kumataro, along with my other stuffed animal family. I could feel my brothers looking at me even though my back was turned to them. I stared at my white two and a half feet tall stuffed bear, inwardly squealing about how cute and adorable it looked…again, and placed it on my bed.

"That reminds me, you haven't called us by our names yet; so, we can't help but wonder if you don't know who is who," Kaoru-nii broke the silence and cleared his throat a couple of times.

"So, let's play 'Which is Hikaru' game," he and his twin said in unison as they each put on a beret.

They 'shuffled' a few times before they stood in front of me, mirroring each other's position. I merely raised an eyebrow and glanced up at the two for a couple of seconds before my attention reverted back to my Kumataro, who was giving me puppy-dog eyes to hug him.

"Hikaru-nii is on my right, and Kaoru-nii is on my left," I answered as I gathered my bear in my arms and squeezed the stuffing out of it.

When I looked back to my brothers, Kaoru-nii was staring at me in shock as if silently asking me, 'How did you know?' before he looked at his twin, who was mirroring his expression as well. Silence filled the room, yet again, for an unsaid period of time while I silently asked Kumataro about why he had to look so cute.

"I've been able to differentiate you two since I was young," I felt the need to explain as I tsked at him and Hikaru; otherwise, those shocked expressions were going to be plastered on their face all day long, and that would be annoying. "It was a bit harder when we were young since the tone of your voice is practically on the same wavelength. It's a little easier now since Hikaru-nii's voice is slightly lower than Kaoru-nii. That detail aside, the glint in your eyes is different: even though both have that mischievous-anxious look, Kaoru-nii looked 30% more anxious than Hikaru-nii. Oh, and Kaoru-nii's footsteps are lighter by 25% than Hikaru-nii."

Perhaps I should not have used my sniper-like skills to explain my deduction to them since they now had that, 'How did she decipher that much within those few seconds?' looks. I have yet to tell them or my mother about this; but I think it would be revealed soon anyway, considering I am now staying with them until we catch the criminal known as 'Lady Killer', and that I am now in the frontline. That is, I meant the fact that I am a sniper would be out in the open soon, and that 'I' am going to be sacrificed for this mission.

"Oh yes, Riku," Kaoru-nii started as if he realized something important, and when I raised an eyebrow at his direction, he continued with a, "About that outing we talked about the other day…"

"What of it?" I responded in somewhat dubious tone at his and Hikaru-nii's grinning expression. I had a feeling that I would not like whatever they had planned.

"Let's go to an amusement park," Hikaru-nii continued with a grin.

I knew I should have waited until well into mid-morning to come back; but no, I had to go with the fact that the sooner I come back, the sooner I would be able to finish this mission. Curse that feeling.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed.

**Note:** Real life got in the way so apologies for the late update. Major thanks to Tsuki-chan for helping me write half of this chapter.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 9: <span>

Hikaru glanced at his cellphone for time before he pocketed the item, and gave Kaoru a sidelong glance. Riku had specifically told them to come back at eight o'clock, and it was well passed the aforementioned time. He nervously gulped down his anxiety, and gently knocked on her bedroom door three times.

It did not take her long to appear in front of them, dressed in 'Kumajiro' pajamas and was struggling to rub sleep out of her eyes with one hand while attempting to tame her bed hair with the other hand. Hikaru suppressed an amused smile that threatened to escape from his lips as much as possible; but it seemed Riku had already noticed the offending gesture when she looked at them with narrowed eyes.

He heard Kaoru gulped beside him, evidently a little afraid. They would be fools not to be; after all, Riku was a demon in the mornings. They were speaking from experience when they had tried to wake her up on Sunday so they could take her to see sights and such. Evident to say, Hikaru and Kaoru had lost five years of their lives that morning, and they learned that pillows were not as soft as they originally had thought.

"Can I help you?" she asked with a yawn. Her voice was a little husky from sleep, and she looked as if she could fall asleep while still talking to them.

Hikaru ruffled his hair as he cleared his throat, and said, "Ne, Riku. Let's go to an amusement park. You like those, right?"

He and Kaoru had researched… yes, _researched_ (with the help of Kyoya-senpai, not that he was going to mention that little detail) when his twin had suggested an outing for them. They found quite a few things that Riku liked that were normal… sort of; amusement parks, and stuffed animals were two of them.

Riku did not respond as she covered her mouth to release another yawn, and looked at them as if she was still trying to register what he had just said.

"We want to start proving ourselves to you now. So, let's go have some fun – Fuji-Q High Land is amazing," Kaoru added with a nod.

She raised an eyebrow, looking slightly more awake than she was seconds ago, "Fuji-Q? Hmm… that's supposed to be one of the best amusement parks in Japan."

"Only the best for you," Kaoru chipped in again.

Hikaru did not know whether he should face palmed at his brother or not; but for now, he let it slide and looked over to his sister. "So, are you coming?" he asked expectantly.

Riku crossed her arms over her chest, and peered at them curiously as if she was silently debating if she should accept their offer. Finally, she said, "How did you guys know that I liked rollercoasters?"

"Because we're your brothers!" he and Kaoru said in union with their thumbs up. They were not going to tell her that they had spent hours bugging Kyoya-senpai to find information on her, and nearly had to sell their souls to the Shadow King.

Riku rolled her eyes at their antics, but nodded in acceptance as she said, "Fine. I'll go get changed."

Hikaru gave a radiant grin that was known to make his clients faint or get nosebleed – again, speaking from experience –, and was about to hug her… when she shut the door in his face.

"I'll see how today goes," his sister said from inside her room whilst Hikaru nursed his bruised nose, "And no tricks!"

He looked over to his twin, and gave a soft sigh as he shook his head in a disapproving manner. Typical Riku; she was always suspecting that they would do _something_ to her. Well, now was as good as any to change her mind.

* * *

><p>"Are we there yet?" Hikaru-nii moaned as the car continued rolling down the motorway, minding of the speed limit.<p>

I gave a slight shrug and answered, "We're going up to Mount Fuji. It's going to take a while," as if I was talking to a child. However, given the fact that this was his twentieth time asking that question for the past 30 minutes, I had already taken the liberty to label him as one.

"But I'm bored," came his next sentence.

"We've been in here for half an hour only. There's still, like, three hours more of drive time to do," I replied as patiently as I could, which was not much to be truthful.

"And?"

I could feel a vein throbbing in my temple, and it seemed Kaoru-nii noticed too as he attempted to cure Hikaru-nii's boredom to the best as he could. I ignored the two while I popped in my music player's headphones, and stared out of the window, watching the scenery passed by listlessly.

_"I will become the shade in the hot summer,  
>I will become your umbrella when it rains,<br>I will become the small chair when you become tired from walking,  
>So that your happiness will be doubled, I will laugh with you,<br>I will become the towel when you cry to wipe your tears."_

I drummed my fingers to the beat of the song even though I did not know much Korean, and what knowledge I do have of the language – which was not much, mind you – came from the drama shows I watched during my free time. My thoughts then turned to the rollercoasters as a smile reflected on the window.

I remembered going to Alton Towers once in England as a celebration after the Seaford incident and Ayame-sensei had given her approval that I could go out. Even to this day, I could subconsciously feel the utter speed of the Rita, and the sheer height and dizzying drop of the Oblivion. They pumped me with adrenaline that I had not felt elsewhere, and usually, the next thing I wanted to do was unfasten myself from the ride and free-fall off it.

Somehow, I had willed myself to not do such thing then; but the musings never stopped once since I almost completed the deed on Rita. The only reason I had stopped was because of Rion, who was sitting next to me on the ride; otherwise, I could have been a splat on the tarmac at that point. Now, wouldn't that be amusing?

"Ne, Riku, Kaoru~" Hikaru drawled, seemingly sounding excited over something, and when I acknowledged my attention onto him, he continued, "Let's play 'I Spy'."

I let out a sigh as I switched to another song on my music player, and continued watching the fleeting Tokyo scenery. 'I spy with my little eyes, something beginning with 'danger',' I inwardly mused with a smirk forming at the corner of my lips. Of course, I was not going to tell them that.

**x0x0x0x0x**

After what it seemed to be forever since I had to listen to Hikaru-nii's constant whines of 'Are we there yet?', the car stopped at the entrance of the Fuji-Q High Land, and the air was filled with happy screams and sounds of fast moving machinery. I stepped out of the car and stretched my limbs, ignoring the slight buzz of thrills that coursed through me.

'No, I came here to judge my brothers, not die,' I told myself, and winced slightly when Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii both placed their arms on my shoulders.

"Isn't it awesome?" they said in unison, already making my eye twitch.

I thought that there could not be anything more annoying at this amusement park other than my brothers, even though I kept telling myself to focus on happy thoughts. However, I was thoroughly mistaken when a limousine pulled up behind our car, and out came a tall blond man…Suoh-san.

He spread his arms wide, twirling around in his spot as he exclaimed, "Oh Haruhi, isn't this place fantastic? I've always wanted to go to a commoner's amusement park with you!"

Dear Kumataro, please take me home and have morning tea with me now.

Fujioka-san came out behind him, looking unenthusiastic about the whole thing, and answered, "What's the difference between a rich person's park and a commoner's? In any case, I have shopping to do – take me back."

"We already paid for your ticket, Haruhi," Ootori-san said smoothly as he got out with his black notebook. "You of all people should know the value of money, so don't waste it."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at his tactic, and kept the comment, 'You just want to gather more blackmail materials,' to myself.

Shaking my head at the newly arrived group of people, I gave Kaoru-nii a sharp nudge to the stomach, and said, "What's the Host Club doing here?"

He gave me a rueful look, and shrugged as he answered, "To be honest, I have no idea," before he directed his attention to Suoh-san, "Hey Tono, what are you doing here?"

Suoh-san flourished his hand spectacularly to Fuji-Q, and proclaimed, "Why, Daddy is here to escort dear Haruhi to a fun amusement park, and protect her when she gets on the big and scary rides! With me here, she will have nothing to fear!"

"More like, with you here, I have everything to fear," Fujioka-san retorted in a deadpanned tone.

I could not have agreed more with her. I inwardly let out a sigh when I saw Morinozuka-san and Haninozuka-san got out of the limousine, and silently noted how the whole Host Club was present. I walked to the ticket counter where the line was almost nonexistent, and I quickly found myself stationed in front of the pricing board. Let's see… 4300 yen for a high school student…

"Kaoru, be a nice brother and let _me_ pay for Riku," I looked over to the right of me where I heard Hikaru-nii's voice, and noticed him holding a black wallet in his hands while leering at his twin.

"Hikaru, you be the nice brother and back off, so _I_ can pay for Riku," Kaoru-nii countered while holding his own black wallet.

I stared at one of the rollercoasters as one of its carts came rushing down from one of its drops, listening to its riders' terrified screams of excitement. I nearly smiled at the scene before my attention shifted to my brothers, who were still bickering about which one of them will be paying for my ticket.

I rolled my eyes at their antics; their not-so-subtle ways of attempting to grab brownie points from me was not going to work. It did not matter who paid for my ticket – although Hikaru-nii managed to do so before his twin – if they could not prove themselves today, it would just tell me that I was a fool for believing them even minutely. With a small nod of my head to the ticket salesman, I took my day pass and entered through the gates wordlessly.

The screams magnified as the first thing I saw was the Great ZAMBOON. A cutting wind whistled past me when the coaster train zoomed along the circuit, carrying a dozen of thrilled passengers. I could feel the prickle of adrenaline invade my system, and I immediately forced myself to take a deep, shuddering breath. For Hikaru-nii's and Kaoru-nii's sakes, I prayed that I would not get suicidal.

The creaking noise of the gate caught my attention, and I saw Haninozuka-san stepping through, wearing an inch thick soled boots in this heat. His tall cousin followed shortly after, looking stoic yet nonchalant about the whole thing. It was not summer yet; but it was hot enough to make my eye twitch as I scanned the footwear.

He seemed to have noticed my questioning stare, and explained, "Most people don't believe that I'm eighteen, and with so many height restrictions in this place, I thought I'd wear something that passes all the minimum height requirements! Isn't that a good idea, Takashi, Riku-chan~?"

"Ah," Morinozuka-san agreed.

I nodded my head in amusement, wisely choosing to keep my comment to myself. I looked down at my own gladiator sandals, earthen colored linen shorts under a waist length eggshell chiffon top with black bow accents. Mom had told me to dress appropriately for the weather; but I felt so exposed and paranoid that I had slipped on my school black coat as well.

Despite regretting that I wore a _black_ coat in this weather, it also has multiple purposes. One, it was bulletproof in case anyone tried to attack me; two, I was able to hide my guns and magazines in its inner pockets, and lastly, it kept me from feeling exposed.

"What do you want to go on first, Riku-chan?" Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii crooned in unison.

I nearly laughed out loud when their hopeful faces and puppy dog eyes withered under my glare as I said, "Drop the 'chan' honorific."

"Sorry," they responded together with pouty expressions.

I raised a thoughtful hand to my chin, and contemplated which ride to go on first. It would be a waste to face rides like Fujiyama and the Great ZAMBOON immediately; after all, it would suck all the fun out of the day for all of us if I decided to jump off in the morning. My eyes spotted a pirate ship ride nearby, whose sign read 'Hamtaro's Ship'. The metal ship tossed its riders into the air, and caught them just before they felt like they were going to fall out before it hurled them in the other direction.

It was a good place to start, seeing as it was a smaller ride than most attractions in the park; plus, it looked fun and it would also appease my adrenaline rush with its fake feeling of free-falling. In addition, it had Hamtaro, which was one of my childhood's best friends… and I was not talking about the Hamtaro plush that I left sitting next to Kumataro in my room.

"We're going to that," I decided with a smirk.

**x0x0x0x0x**

The falling sensation was simply phenomenal. I felt my stomach being pulled by the gravity and then being pushed up to my mouth by the ride. Another phenomenon had to be Ootori-san; he had announced that he was only going on the ride because he had never experienced an amusement park before. He evidently got bored on the ride, and started writing in his mysterious black notebook as if he was not on five tons of moving metal. I did not wish to think about what kind of demonic creature he was.

Instead, I focused my attention on Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii sitting across from me. Their expressions were of pure joy, and they laughed in synchronization when they tossed their arms to the sky as the ride came down. I smile slightly – it must be nice to have a twin, and do everything with them. I was lucky enough to get two brothers; but then when I was with them, I never felt more alone than when I was by myself.

I instantly whipped my head around when the hairs on the back of my neck prickled. It was a bad move as Hamtaro's Ship was taking one last heave into the air, and my stomach immediately felt queasy from the change of perspective. I turned back to stop the nausea, and cursed inwardly for not taking my current location into consideration. However, I could not ignore the fact that it really felt as if someone was watching.

I took a deep breath, trying to slow down my heart rate as the ride slowed down to a stop. It could just be another bout of paranoia; however as a Cavalier, I never tend to ignore my instinct. 'For now, let's see what happens,' I silently concluded as we got off the ship. I furtively checked that my twin handguns were still in my coat pockets. I would be a fool to leave the house without them, despite the fact that the security here probably did not know that I have a license for these, and would attempt to arrest me if they saw.

"So what next, Riku-hime?" Suoh-san asked while still clutching onto Fujioka-san's hand, despite her attempt to shake off his hold.

I raised an eyebrow at the 'hime' suffix to my name, deciding to ignore it, and gave a shrug to his inquiry. "I'll let someone else choose," I answered.

Immediately, Haninozuka-san's arm shot into the air as he said, "The teacups, the teacups! I like it when Takashi spins it really fast, and then I go 'whee!'"

Morinozuka-san nodded slightly in consent, and a general murmur of agreement ran through the crowd. Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii looked at me expectantly; well, if someone was really tailing us then they would have a hard time doing anything while the teacups were spinning. On the other hand, my stomach was still feeling slightly unsettled from the Hamtaro's Ship. Nevertheless, I nodded as well; I suppose I should treat this as a mission and get over it.

I inwardly sighed as I followed the group towards the teacups while I subtly glanced behind once again to check if anyone was indeed tailing us. When I did not see or felt that anyone was stalking us, I let out a smirk and continued walking with the Host Club. If anyone dared to attack in the midst of this crowd, I certainly welcome them to try; after all, I am ready to counterattack if needed to.

* * *

><p>Hikaru pointed at the blue, purple, and yellow striped cup and the three of them walked to it and sat down. He saw the rest of the Host Club (except for Kyoya-senpai who refused to ride as silly as that) do the same thing, with Tono practically dragging an unwilling Haruhi to the ornate red and gold cup. Within a couple of minutes, the various colored cups got filled almost instantaneously, and soon, it was time for the ride to commence.<p>

He grabbed the spinning wheel and glinted mischievously at Kaoru and Riku. His sister merely raised a minutely intrigued eyebrow whilst Kaoru just face palmed – ah, his twin knew him so well.

"So," he started with a grin, "Does anyone want to see how fast we can go without throwing up? I'm willing to feel some Gs, like the astronauts."

He and Kaoru looked at Riku for approval; but she simply sighed and gave them a forlorn look as she said, "Look, just do what you want; but don't go too fast. I don't like getting dizzy, and if I puke – hey wait, not that fast!"

Hikaru had just shrugged during the sentence, and spun the wheel with all his strength. The cup soon became whirling colors, mixed with Kaoru and himself yelling in joy even though they bumped into other cups every so often.

On the other hand, Riku was yelling at them to stop, "Slow it down!"

"Speed it up?" Kaoru responded as he pretended that she said the opposite, "Okay!"

Kaoru turned the wheel a few times, and soon, the whole world became a blur once again. Hikaru knew that it was a gamble – but it was a gamble he was willing to take. After all, maybe being a bit spontaneous would make Riku warm up to them. It was a mere theory, and hopefully, it was working.

Finally, the world righted itself as they slowed to stop, indicating that the ride was over. Hikaru hobbled off, using the equally unsteady Kaoru as his support, laughing in unison about how fun the ride was. He then glanced at Riku, and immediately stopped laughing when he saw her expression; her face promised silent slow-and-painful murder. He let out a loud fearful gulp as she clutched his arm in a vice grip, and punched his shoulder repeatedly with her other hand.

"I told you not to go so fast!" she seethed while tightening her grip even though her punches felt nothing to him.

"OWWW!" Hikaru moaned in pain as he tried to release himself from her hold. He was inwardly surprised by her power, and he would not be surprised if she cut off his blood circulating on his arm. "I'm sorry, Riku; stop hitting me!"

She let out a huff as she visibly calmed down, and released her clutch while she flashed her golden amber eyes dangerously at him and Kaoru. Okay, so that theory epically had failed. The twins looked at each other, and shrugged since they have another plan. They linked arms with Riku and guided the dizzy girl to another ride. Hopefully, this one would work better than the teacups.

"Okay, where are you taking me?" she asked warily, almost tripping over her own feet.

"It's a secret~"' he and Kaoru crooned with a smirk.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you took me on the merry-go-round after the teacups," I glared at the offending duo, and added, "And you left me on it on my own!"<p>

"But… you looked cute on it," Kaoru-nii answered tentatively.

I groaned, and pinched the bridge of my nose, resisting the urge to say, "For the love of all that is good and peaceful." That was dangerous, not only for my sake, but for their own. What if the unknown stalker – whom I had sensed when we arrived – had decided to strike when I was incapacitated? I would not have been able to protective anyone from a possible killer, and if that killer turned out to be a serial murderer, this whole amusement park would transformed into a red sea filled with dead bodies.

I saw the rest of the Host Club approaching out of the corner of my eyes, and gave them a questioning look when I saw that they were all sopping wet. Suoh-san shrugged off his fleece and wrung it, creating a puddle on the pavement. After slinging it over his shoulder, he dramatically ran a hand through his wet blond hair. I would not admit it, but he looked cool for a moment.

"Ah, the refreshing, exhilarating feeling of a water ride has touched my soul," he said ever-so-dramatically. "It plunges you into an aquatic heaven, whetting a man's appetite for adventure."

I raised an eyebrow at the speech, silently wondering where he was pulling those lines from. I turned to Ootori-san, who was equally wet, and almost letting a snicker at his disheveled state.

"It also wets a man's valuable resource," he grumbled while he tried to stop the wet ink in his notebook from running off, even though we both knew it was a failed attempt.

"I thought you don't like rides," I pointed out.

"I don't," Ootori-san replied as he pushed his glasses back onto his nose, and added, "But by the time I realized that the barriers to keep spectators from getting wet are not nearly high enough, it was a little too late."

I did not even bother to hide my snickers, silently pleased to see the Shadow King flustered. "What now?" I asked as the dizzy sensation finally stopped whirling around my mind.

"Haruhi, Haruhi, why don't we go to the Labyrinth of Fear together?" Suoh-san chimed in happily as he gave puppy dog eyes to Fujioka-san, who let out a sigh and gave a warily look towards the blond.

I had a feeling that the only reason he suggested that was so that he could hold her when Fujioka-san gets scared. It was one of the oldest tricks in the books. I glanced over to my brothers, silently daring them to even suggest going to that at attraction, and let out a triumphant smirk when they gulped after they saw my look.

"No," Fujioka-san refused in a flat tone as she wrung the corner of her shirt. "Riku-san, I saw some game booths on the way here. Do you want to go take a look at them? You get to win teddy bears."

I love how she knew my soft spot without knowing them personally. I looked at her as if she was a hero, and then glanced over Hikaru and Kaoru, silently trying to them that this is what we are going to do next.

"Never fear, Haruhi! Daddy will win you a lot of teddy bears!" Suoh-san declared while the mentioned girl simply face palmed at his action as if she was embarrassed to be seen with him.

"Takashi, do you think we can win some teddy bears too?" Haninozuka-san asked to his cousin.

"Ah," that was all Morinozuka-san said as we followed Fujioka-san to the game booths.

**x0x0x0x0x**

I nearly laughed at the irony of some of these game booths. Most of them happened to be shooting games – something which I was very skilled at – while the other ones happened to be ring-toss games. Haninozuka-san immediately ran to one of the booths, dragging his cousin behind him while I looked over to Fujioka-san, and took her over to a nearby shooting booth. From the corner of my eyes, I noticed my brothers, Suoh-san, and Ootori-san following us.

"Do you want to give it a try, Fujioka-san?" I asked with mirth lacing in my tone as I eyed at the prizes before my gaze landed on a large ivory-colored teddy bear that seemed to be saying, 'Take me home with you!'

"Uh… I…" she stammered as her gaze is fixated on the game, and the sniper rifles on the counter.

Suoh-san immediately stepped in, and said, "Don't worry, Haruhi! I'll win a teddy bear for you. Now which one do you want?"

My attention shifted from the scene when I felt two arms around my shoulders, and next thing I knew, I was sandwiched between my brothers. I willed myself to stay calm as I tried to shrug off their arms, but to no avail.

"So Riku," they spoke in unison. I noticed from the corner of my eyes that they were looking at me, and besides, I could feel their breaths on my cheeks. "Which teddy bear do _you_ want?"

"The biggest one, of course," I responded as I tried to remain unfazed by their invasion of my personal bubble. "If you can win it for me, I might just forgive you for your actions at the teacup," I added as an afterthought.

I let out a twitch when Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii pushed me aside, threw down some bills on the counter, and grabbed the sniper rifles. I stood next to Ootori-san and Fujioka-san as I watched my brothers and Suoh-senpai compete against each other to win the only cute and fluffy giant teddy bear.

The objective of the game was to shoot down the moving red target in the center in order to win that prize. It was nearly impossible since there were other targets occasionally blocking the view of the red target. After a few minutes, I let out a sigh when I noticed a pile of small and medium sized teddy bears piling up next to my brothers.

"Great, how are we going to take them home?" I grumbled when my eyes flicked over to the ivory colored teddy bear, which still had that 'Take me home with you!' look.

"Haruhi, this is for you!" I heard Suoh-san's excited chatter.

When I looked over to his direction, I noticed he handed Fujioka-san a white medium-sized teddy bear with a pink bow and a red heart in its hand with 'Love' in cursive writing. I let out a snicker at their beet-red expressions, and decided to let them be as I walked over to my brothers.

"At this rate, we'll be here all day," I stated as I picked up a medium sized white teddy bear with a red and black striped vest. I turned the bear around and noticed a white fluff ball attached to its butt, pleased by the fact that it had a tail.

Hikaru looked over to my direction with a determined expression, and said, "We'll win that bear that you want so you can forgive us."

It would be a lie to say that I was not touched by his determination, and I almost felt bad that I issued that nearly impossible task onto them. I handed the white bear that I was holding and grabbed the sniper rifle from his hands, ignoring the surprised expression on his face.

"Move over, Kaoru-nii," I told my other brother, and when he looked at me confusedly, I added, "I don't want to wait all day to see if you and Hikaru-nii will manage to win that bear or not. Besides, I'm getting hungry."

Kaoru-nii let out a small frown but nonetheless, he placed the rifle back on the counter and stepped aside. From the corner of my eyes, I noticed that the Host Club (sans Haninozuka-san and Morinozuka-san) was watching my every move. I let out a smirk as I adjusted the weight of the rifle in my arms, inwardly noting its lightweight and concluded that bullets inside were mere rubber bullets.

On a silent count of three, I pulled the trigger, recoiling a bit in return, and watched as the bullet traveled towards the targets. It grazed by the first target, missing the second one by mere centimeters, and brushed against the third target before it pierced through the red target in the center.

"My first prize, please," I chuckled at the stunned man handling the booth. He numbly handed over the lone ivory bear to me, and gave my brothers some plastic bags to put my other bears. I hugged the bear, relishing at the fact its fur was so soft and that it was just a perfect size for a bear hug. I was even more pleased with the fact that it was very cute and even had a tail. All in all, the bear was simply perfect.

**x0x0x0x0x**

Kaoru looked over to his sister while he placed another small bear in the plastic bag, and nudged over to his twin when he noticed a carefree smile on Riku's expression. He and Hikaru looked over to Riku's direction, watching her as she hugged the bear tightly with a smile on her face. She released the stuffed animal to look at it, and then hugged it once more.

He and his brother shared a look before they turned to look at their sister. Wordlessly, they grabbed two bags of stuffed bears – almost robbing the booth owner of the prizes – and walked over to Riku, who was holding the bear as if she was carrying a baby.

"Where to next?" Hikaru asked.

**x0x0x0x0x**

After the teddy bear event, the Host Club had dragged Fujioka-san and I to the Labyrinth of Fear much to my dismay. We had split into three groups, while Ootori-san decided not to participate and offered to 'babysit' my teddy bears (I found that hilarious despite the fact that I _did not_ want to go on that attraction). My brothers and I were in one group while the remaining four were in the other group – I had an inkling feeling that Suoh-san wanted to be with Fujioka-san himself and not share her with Haninozuka-san and Morinozuka-san.

'I so don't want to go on this,' I thought with a slight frown and looked back my ivory teddy bear. I could have sworn that it was looking at me with 'Good luck, Master!' look. Of course, it might have been my imagination caused by my nerves.

Despite my hesitation to go inside the attraction, I felt that perpetuating feeling of being watched yet again, which was following an unsettling feeling in my stomach that was not due to my fear of the horror attraction. I steeled my nerves and tentatively followed my brothers into the building, and let out a nervous gulp as my vision adjusted to the darkened room.

I blinked in surprise when I felt Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii took a hold of my hands, and sandwiched me between them. Kaoru-nii began talking about the badly made decorations in an attempt to distract me, but I think his comments had only angered the staff more as they tried to scare us more than usual (although I did not know what was 'usual' in these attractions, but their attempts were more frequent than I would have liked).

In the distant, I heard a girly scream that made me tightened my grips on my brothers' hands.

"I think that was Tono's scream," Hikaru-nii commented in an amused tone as we turned around the corner.

My eyes widened when I heard a familiar sound of muffled gunshot through the creepy music, and immediately pulled Hikaru-nii in a hug with a small scream as if I was scared. I felt the dull pain of the bullet hitting against my coat (I would not be surprised if a bruise formed on my back by tonight), and marginally looked over my shoulders just in time to see a figure running away into the darkness.

"There, there, Riku. There's nothing there, see?" Kaoru-nii attempted to calm my nerves once more.

"Sorry, I thought I saw something," I responded as I pulled away from a shocked Hikaru-nii. I knew that he did not see the person attempting to shoot at him, so I could only speculate that he was surprised that I hugged him.

* * *

><p>I gave my brothers a pointed look when I stared at the giant wheel before us. Of all the rides that we could have ridden as our last ride, they had chosen the Ferris wheel.<p>

"You do know that this is a couple-ride, right?" I stated in a deadpanned tone.

Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii merely grinned at me as if they did not care and linked my arms and dragged me towards the ride, which surprisingly did not have a lot of people lining up. I gave a resigned sigh when they dropped me off inside the cart on a bench, and took a seat across from me. One of the workers closed the door after he reminded us to make sure that our arms and legs were inside the cart at all times.

"Did you have fun, Riku?" Kaoru-nii began in an attempt to start a conversation as the ride began.

I looked over to them, noticing that the remaining Host Club was sitting by a bench with my teddy bear family. Ootori-san was scribbling something in his now-dried notebook while Haninozuka-san was eating his ice cream.

"Surprisingly, yes," I responded and nearly let out a chuckle when Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii sighed in relief. "Lunch wasn't so bad, and the roller coaster rides we rode afterwards were fun as well."

I stood up from my seat as I peered at the scenery as our cart arrived near to the top. I still could not shake off the feeling of being watched as I scanned over the amusement park, trying to locate the source. My breath hitched to a stop when I saw a red laser beam directed towards us. It was akin to the laser beam I used to use to mark my aim with my sniper rifle.

I looked over to my brothers and saw the red dot aimed at the center of Kaoru-nii's forehead. 'It looks like the harmless fun ends now,' I thought with a frown.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 10: <span>

I quickly calculated the amount of time I had before the shot would be fired, and instantly pulled him away from the harm's way on impulse, even though there were not very many places to run to in this tiny compartment. He gave me confused look as he stumbled towards Hikaru-nii just as there was a very distinctive bullet hole shot through the glass door and on the area behind where Kaoru-nii had been sitting earlier.

"Damn it, we're sitting ducks," I cursed under my breath as I stood up to peer over to see who had dared to initiate an attack under my watch.

"What's going on, Riku?" Hikaru-nii asked with his eyebrows furrowed while he put an arm over his twin. From the corner of my eyes, I noticed him looking at the bullet holes with his eyes widened in silent shock and surprise. He opened his mouth to inquire about it, but I signaled him to quiet down before I shifted my attention to the scenery outside.

I scanned through the crowd, eyes quickly darting over young children running around, parents trying catch up to them, some of the park's employees, and the Host Club waiting by a bench near the Ferris wheel. Then by sheer luck, I noticed a glint coming from the rooftop of Labyrinth of Fear.

"You're being targeted," I finally responded without tearing my eyes away from the location but making sure to look as if I had not found the marksman either. After all, I knew that my foe was looking at the scene through some optics equipment since I also happened to be a sniper as well.

"Targeted? By whom?" my brothers repeated in a dumbfounded tone. They then frantically looked around to try and find the source of the attack; but since they did not know who or what they were looking for, they ended looking foolish.

I let out a sigh at their antics as I stood by the door where the marksman had attacked so that my back was facing the attacker. "Calm down," I spoke in a low tone as I pulled out my cell phone, quickly messaging the Special Investigative team and the police department regarding the matter. "I've already located where the attacker is. But if we attack him now, it'll only cause mass panic to everyone else at the park. For now, just pretend that nothing is wrong."

"But Riku…" Kaoru-nii began but I merely gave him a reassuring smile. I then took out one of the pistols from my coat, quickly inserting a cartilage of magazine in it.

"Don't worry, I've got everything covered. Just make sure to follow my instructions as quickly as you can," I responded steadily as I made sure that the gun's barrel is pointed downward. My eyes darted back to where the marksman was located, letting out a small barely noticeable smirk when I saw a red laser line directed to the side of Hikaru-nii's head this time.

"Oh and by the way, Hikaru-nii, your shoe lace is untied," I pointed out casually.

I almost let out a snicker when my brother bent down to check, just as I had thought he would, when another bullet whizzed by where his head was previously and shot through the glass near Kaoru-nii. Luckily, my brother was able to follow my instruction swiftly without questioning me; otherwise, he would be dead. Well, he would not actually be dead since I would have saved him, considering our parents and Kaoru-nii are not going to be happy to find him dead.

"What are you talking, Riku? My footwear doesn't have shoe laces," he pointed out and sat up. "And when do you carry a gun? It's dangerous, you know."

"My bad," I gave an innocent smile even though I was positive that my eyes portrayed otherwise. "As a Cavalier, we are allowed to be armed; so I've been handling guns and sniper rifles for about four years. Although I've been doing deskwork for about three years since Seaford incident, but I've recently been put back on the frontline."

"Frontline?" Kaoru-nii gaped as he eyed at me, and then to my weapon. "In any case, it's too dangerous for you. What if you get hurt? Do our parents even know about this?"

I slightly turned my gaze to my right to where the attacker was located at, and raised my black gun as I inwardly noted that the color camouflaged well with the twilight. "Yes, frontline; I use my skills as a sniper and my ability to predict the enemy's next move based on their previous moves to counterattack. My aim is deadly precise, or so I've been told," I responded as I stood up straight in front of Hikaru-nii and raised my gun a few centimeters above his head.

"Now, don't move an inch. I don't want to accidentally hit you," I continued in a low tone, fully aware of the surprised yet frozen in fear expressions on my brothers. "Now from our attacker's point of view, it looks as if I am going to shoot you, but in the next few seconds, he's going to change his direction and fire towards me. I want you to look my left hand without moving your head, and on the count of three, I want you to duck down immediately."

Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii side glanced at each other as the former shrugged in confusion. My right finger slowly circled around the trigger whilst my left hand counted to three as I have mentioned previously. Just as my brothers dropped down to the ground near my feet with their hands covering their heads, I pulled the trigger.

I let out a satisfied smirk when I noticed a small explosion in the near distance, indicating that I had managed to counter the attacker's next action. 'Hopefully, that will keep him off our track, if only for a moment,' I thought as I lowered my gun to my side before I moved to lock the weapon so that it would not accidentally go off and ended up wounding someone.

Just when I had finished putting back my gun inside one of my coat pockets, the Ferris wheel began moving, instantly jolting me out of my footing. I ended up falling on Kaoru-nii, who was in the process of standing up from his position, and he ended up tangling his limps with Hikaru-nii as a domino effect.

"Ah sorry," I murmured awkwardly as I stood up from Kaoru-nii, and immediately moved to sit in one of the seats.

Once the two had sat down across from me, Hikaru-nii looked over to my direction, and opened his mouth to say something when the cart's entrance door opened.

"I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience," a worker apologized profusely with a bow for the short stall at the top.

Kaoru-nii gave a polite smile to indicate that it was alright, even though his and Hikaru-nii's lives have been endangered a few minutes ago. I first headed out of the ride, and said to my brothers in a quiet tone, "Be careful; this isn't over just yet," as I walked passed them.

'I hope that showed our attacker that I'm not the one to be messed with,' my eyes narrowed as I glanced at the location where my attacker had hid. A cold smirk made its way on my expression while I pulled out my cell phone to message the Special Investigative team and the police department I had contacted earlier regarding this matter.

**x0x0x0x0x**

"Are you guys okay?" Haruhi asked as soon as he, Hikaru, and Riku had exited the Ferris wheel cart.

He was shaken by what had transpired earlier, and there were many questions whirling around in his mind. Most of them were regarding about why someone would attack them, and others were regarding about his sister and her calmness throughout this whole matter.

"Yeah," Kaoru managed to respond albeit weakly as he glanced over to Riku, noticing a serious expression on her face. She looked as if she was livid by the situation they had faced earlier; but when he continued to look over to her direction for a while, she finally noticed his stare. Instead of telling him that he should not be staring at her like he had expected, Riku merely gave him a reassuring smile that strangely managed to calm his nerves. Weird…

"We heard some gunshots earlier," Honey-senpai stated in a serious tone even though he was holding his Usa-chan.

Riku clicked her tongue in an annoyed manner as she pulled his twin, making Hikaru stumbled a few steps from his spot. His brother opened his mouth to question her action but instantly quiet down when there was a bullet hole where Hikaru had once stood.

"Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii are being attacked," she spoke in a low tone but her expression indicated that she was thoroughly displeased.

"Attacked? Why?" Kyoya-senpai asked as he readjusted his glasses before he looked at the direction of the attack.

"It's probably related to the latest case we're handling. And considering how Hikaru and Kaoru were hanging out with me all day, I think our attacker has speculated that they are close to me. Hence, the attack," Riku responded solemnly, dropping the honorifics altogether, as she shoved her hands in her pocket. "For now, it's better if you guys head home. I'll have an Informa team to stand watch, in case they decided to try anything to the rest of you," she directed the statement to the Host Club in the same tone.

"Don't worry, Haruhi! Daddy will protect you from evildoers!" Tono proclaimed as he moved to hug Haruhi.

She, however, sidestepped to dodge it altogether and said in a deadpanned tone, "I don't need you to protect me. I have my own Dad to do that, thank you very much."

"In any case, we can't idle around here and be sitting ducks," Riku stated as she bent down to grab something, and then stood up while holding something wrapped in a white handkerchief. "And Haninozuka-san, would you mind giving back my not-yet-named Kuma-chan and its cousins back?"

"But… Riku-chan," Honey-senpai responded with a puppy-dog look filled with unshed tears.

She rubbed her temple with one hand while her other hand was rested on her waist, and finally let out a deep sigh. "Fine, you can hold on to them until I get home," Riku conceded as if she had no choice in the matter.

He, along with the rest of the Host Club and Riku, followed Kyoya-senpai to the parking lot since Tono nearly led them to the wrong parking lot. Kaoru glanced over to his sister, who was quietly following them, and glanced over to his twin as he tried to figure out how to break the silence.

"Ne, Riku-chan," Honey-senpai broke the silence as he fell into steps with his sister, and continued as he clenched onto an ivory colored teddy bear that was nearly as tall as him, "Have you decided what to name your Kuma-chan?"

"Hmm… I don't know. What do you think?" Riku answered in a contemplative tone as she stared at the bear, which stared back at her.

"How about naming it after us?" Hikaru spoke with a grin on his lips, but the expression quickly fell when their sister shot an annoyed look at his twin's direction.

"No way," she quickly shot down the idea, dashing the hopeful look from his brother as quickly as it came. "From now on, I dub thee 'Kumago-chan'," Riku said to the bear as if she was talking to a human being.

Kaoru sweat dropped at the scene, wisely choosing not to comment on it, as they arrived to the parking lot. He looked around the nearly empty place while trying to locate their limousine and its driver. He frowned when he noticed that their driver had not pulled up the vehicle towards them from its parked space, which happened to be a little away from them.

"It looks like our driver is slacking," Hikaru remarked with a sigh.

He could not help but notice how eerily quiet the parking lot was, even though he could still hear chatters coming from the amusement park, and noted how deserted the place was. In the back of his mind, he felt as if this was something out of a really bad horror film, and that something was going to jump at them any moment.

"Oi, what are you doing slacking off?" Hikaru asked as he knocked on the tinted driver's door a few times. His face twisted into an annoyed one when no one answered the knock, almost as if their driver either did not hear his twin (which would be weird since Hikaru was knocking on the window rather loudly), or the driver was not inside.

Hikaru clicked his tongue in annoyed as he grabbed the limousine's handle, and pulled it opened, surprised by the fact that it was not locked. Just as he pulled the door opened, their driver's body fell onto the ground like a ragdoll, and from the dim lights, Kaoru noted a small trail of blood from the seat to the pavement.

"Don't look, Haruhi!" Tono immediately reacted as he covered Haruhi's eyes.

"Riku," Kaoru started as he was about to do the same with his sister, but she had already walked up to the fallen body.

Wordlessly, she flipped the body over while her eyes glanced over to the driver's body. He noticed the disheveled attire; but otherwise, the driver looked as if he was merely sleeping… if he did not take the trailing blood in an account.

"I'm sorry; I don't mean to involve you in this," Riku whispered in a low tone as she glanced over the body, and then brought the driver's hands to her eyes, looking at them for something. Silently, she stood up from her spot while pulling out her cell phone; and after a moment, she spoke in a somber tone, "We have a victim and a limousine that I want you to investigate on. I have a theory on what has transpired; but a proper autopsy report would be better in this case. We also need a ride home… Alright, thanks."

Silence blanketed the area, save for some scribbling noises from Kyouya-senpai as he wrote in his notebook. Even Kaoru did not know what to say despite the fact that there were many questions whirling around in his mind; but he could not utter those inquiries out loud. It was as if his ability to speak has been robbed from him.

In fact, he knew that if it had not been for Riku's quickness, he and Hikaru would been dead in that Ferris wheel cart. It made him wonder how she had been able to react that quickly for them to be able to dodge those bullets. It almost made him wonder, if only for a moment, if she had been the one who had issued those attacks; however, he quickly discarded the idea. After all, she could not dislike him and Hikaru that much to hire a hit man, right? If she did then, why would she have saved them when they were attacked? In an instant, he felt horrible for even so much as to speculate that his sister would issue those attacks.

"When I get my hands on him, he's going to wish that he's never born," his sister muttered with her hands clenched in a tight fist as her lips twisted in a snarl, and her eyes promising slow and painful death.

"Judging by your reaction, you know who that is, and what happened?" Kyoya-senpai inquired as he closed his notebook and looked over to Riku.

She looked over to his direction, and calmly said, "I have a theory. But I highly advise you not to get involve… I didn't stop you when you researched on me; but involving yourselves with matters as this… dealing with serial criminals and whatnot… that is something you shouldn't do. After all, aside from Haninozuka-san and Morinozuka-san, the rest of you do not have any combat abilities."

"What happened to him?" Haruhi asked the question that had been lingering in his mind for the past couple of minutes.

"Judging by the needle pricks on his fingers, he had his blood drain… drop by drop. His disheveled state also indicated that he put up a fight beforehand," Riku responded with a shudder, and inched towards him and Kaoru as if she was scared of something. "That's my theory; but until we get a proper report, we won't know for sure what exactly happened here."

"You can tell that just from looking at his body?" Haruhi continued in an incredulous tone with an eyebrow raised.

Riku glanced around the premise as if she was looking for something, and a moment later, she nodded to Haruhi. "That's because there was a similar event like this in the past," she replied in an above whisper, and then added in a low inconspicuous tone, "Ne, nothing is going to jump out from those bushes right?"

Kaoru looked over to Hikaru, who openly smirked when he heard the second statement before they each sandwiched Riku between them. "Are you, perhaps, scared?" they asked in unison.

"W-who's scared? I'm just making sure that nothing is going to jump at us, that's all," she answered rather with a slight stutter, making him unconvinced of her response.

**x0x0x0x0x**

We had just gotten home after some of my seniors in the Forensics Investigative team had come to collect the body for an autopsy report, and a couple of seniors from the Armory-Transportation Division came to tow away our limousine to further investigation and then gave us a ride to each of our homes. My brothers and I were the last ones to be sent off since I was telling my seniors in the Forensics Investigative team about the scene of the crime, and the bullet I had found earlier from the attacker. The Special Investigative team and the police department were working together to find more evidences at the scenes we were attacked, and were trying to locate our attacker.

I raised an eyebrow when I heard someone knocking on my door three times, just as I had finished changing into a sea blue and black striped printed tee, and a pair of denim short shorts. I ran a hand through my loosely freed hair as I walked across the room, and opened the door.

"Yes, is there something you need?" I asked while I leaned against the doorframe, silently taking in their tank top and capris attires.

"Um…" Kaoru-nii began as he fidgeted in his spot for a moment. "I want to ask you again… Despite what happened earlier, how was today?" he then asked albeit nervously.

"To be honest," I started as I casually crossed my arms, pausing for theatrics – just to see them squirms some more – and finally said, "Yes, I did have fun today. I have to say you weren't half-bad, considering you knew what I liked for the most part."

"Then we're okay?" Hikaru blurted out in a near expectant tone.

I shifted my glance over to him, and raised an eyebrow in response, "You're not off the woods yet; but you're slowly – very slowly, mind you – getting there."

"At least it's a process," Kaoru-nii sighed almost resignedly, and then asked grimly, "By the way, do you know why our driver got attacked? It seemed you know the reason."

I covered my mouth just as I yawned, trying to rub the sleep out of my eyes, as I said, "It'll take some time to explain; so you might as well come on in."

I had deliberated throughout the ride home whether I should tell them about this, or continue keeping them in the dark. However, in the end, I had decided to tell them the basics, based on what I had previously told them, considering what had happened with our driver, and the fact that they were targeted. I felt as if they, at least, deserved to know that much.

"Take a seat, you two," I muttered as I moved to drop the clothes I had been wearing today in the laundry basket. I sat down on my office chair, swirling around a couple of times just for the fun of it, and then stopped in front of my brothers. I cleared my throat as I gathered my thoughts, and finally said, "First of all, how much do you know about me? I know that you guys researched on me."

Kaoru-nii looked surprised by my statement as he fidgeted in his seat, almost as if he was trying to find a comfortable position, and then asked, "How did you know that?"

I almost had the urge to scoff at his inquiry since it sounded like he was belittling my ability, but in the end, I decided not to. Instead, I answered with a, "Ootori-san didn't erase his footwork as well as he should have. A Communicative Assistance team informed me that someone had breached our firewall, and was trying to hack into our mainframe a couple of days ago. We traced back the IP address and found out it was Ootori-san; of course, he didn't seem to realize that we were watching his every move from the shadows."

"I thought Kyoya-senpai was sneaky enough to be able to be incognito during the whole thing," Hikaru-nii muttered as he repositioned himself to be comfortable on my bed.

"So, what did you find about me from your little research?" I asked again in a slightly amused tone as I leaned against my seat, which swirled around a couple of times from the sudden weight shift.

"Basically everything that was written on your school's website," Kaoru-nii responded solemnly as he put his arms on top of one of my unnamed bears' head. "That you're an S-Ranked detective of some sort, otherwise known as an Imperial Guardian. Based on our conversations earlier, you are a sniper and tactician; but because of an incident in Seaford, you were put in a supportive position until recently. We also found information about other S-Ranked detectives in your group. The last big case you've worked on was the Jack Marquise case, but we weren't able to find out what that case entailed. We just didn't know how to bring it up, sorry."

I was impressed, to say the least, that they were able to gather that much information about me such a short time. After all, the information about the Imperial Guardians is closely guarded so that the cyber criminals would not be able to use our information against us.

"This will make the conversation slightly easier then," I stated as I stood up from my seat, and stretched my limbs, "I can only say that we will take full responsibility for our driver's death. He was assaulted just because he knew me… just as you two were nearly attacked throughout the day."

"But why?" Hikaru-nii asked with his eyes narrowed, and then continued, "Why was he attacked because he knew you? In fact, why were we attacked?"

I did not say anything as I walked over to my desk, and leaned against it, "I don't know. I'm not a part of the Profiling team, so I can't get into the criminal's mindset to figure out why he does what he did. But Jack Marquise once mentioned that he did want me to be a part of his collection; and the attacks today simply a continuation of his legacy so to speak from his minions. It could be because of my sniping skills or my ability as a tactician, I don't know."

"Riku…" Kaoru-nii began with a frown as if he did not like what I had just told him.

"Look, don't worry about this," I spoke in a reassuring tone, trying to sound as if my life was not targeted, and continued, "We might still be in training, and it's rather unfortunate that our driver got mixed in the crossfire; but we will do whatever we can to ensure your safety; that's why, don't worry. Everything will be over soon."

"It sounds like you already knew this was going to happen," Hikaru-nii stated in a somewhat suspicious tone.

"When I came across this mission, I knew that I was going to involve you guys into this mess," I let out a sigh as I ran a hand through my hair, and continued before my brothers had a chance to interrupt, "We may not be close; but I don't hate you to the point that I will use you as a human shield. Anyways, what I'm trying to say is that I don't mean to drag you into this."

If it were not for the seriousness of our discussion, I would have laughed at their paled expressions when I said 'human shield'. In fact, I almost let out a chuckle when they simultaneously gulped, and clung to each other as if their life depended on it.

"Um…Do Mom and Dad know…?" Kaoru-nii asked in a low tone as he eyed at me with the same frown.

My gaze met with his for a moment before I let out a smirk, and answered, "They have an idea of what's happening. In the case that something does happen to them, my hidden cameras and GPS system will immediately alert me. I'll install something similar to your cell phones too."

"This is getting to be too dangerous, Riku," Hikaru-nii commented as he leaned towards his twin, "Can't you hire someone else to do the job for you? And you're too young to be holding guns!"

"There isn't a mission that isn't dangerous; but don't worry about it. It'll be over soon, I promise," I responded with a reassuring smile, and added, "Anyways, go to bed you two; we have school tomorrow."

There was silence as my brothers stared at one another with a smirk, as if they were speaking through twin telepathy or whatever it is called, and then in unsaid unison, they laid down on my bed as if they owned it. I stared at them, trying to register what had just happened, while I looked at the only space available on _my_ bed.

'They purposely left the middle spot open!' my mind screamed as I continued looking at their 'sleeping' forms.

"I meant to your own bed," I pointed out in a deadpanned tone and let out an annoyed twitch when they did not move from their spots.

"But Riku," Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii began with puppy dog eyes from their positions that made want to face palm in exasperation. Did I not tell them enough times that those were _not_ cute? "What if someone attacked us while we're sleeping?" they continued.

I did not want to tell them that they had a valid point, even though I could tell that they were merely using that reason to get me to sleep with them. "Ugh, alright fine… only for tonight, you sissies," I grumbled resignedly as I swirled my seat around so that I was facing the computer desk.

"Are you questioning our masculinity?" they rebutted in sync as they sat up and frowned at me as if I had crossed a line that I should not have.

I raised an eyebrow at the inquiry before I turned out to face them with a visible smirk etching at the corner of my mouth. "Did you have any to begin with? Need I remind you of your Host Club… ahem, 'ventures'? Say, the time you cross-dressed to save Fujioka-san from St. Lobelia?"

I assumed they had fallen into a stunned silence when they did not say anything. Finally after a few seconds, they blurted, "How did you know that?" while holding onto _my_ comforters.

A smirk made its way on my expression as I flicked my gaze at their paled expressions. "I have my sources," that was all I said while I chuckled in amusement at them.

Wordlessly, I punched a few keys on my cell phone to activate the new security system that a part of the Communications Division specializing in security systems had made for me. I then grabbed a black box – given from the Communications Division – from my desk and my Kumago, a 137 centimeters tall stuffed bear, and moved him next to the balcony door so that he was facing the bed. I opened my black box, eyeing at many miniscule cameras in the form of contacts, and then put it over my bear's eyes.

"Riku, what are you doing? You should sleep too," Kaoru-nii asked a moment later. It seemed like he realized I had not climbed into the bed just yet.

"Setting up hidden cameras in case someone tries to break in," I responded before I closed the lid on the black box, and readjusted Kumago's position.

Once I was satisfied, I made sure that the balcony door was securely locked, and then turned off all of the lights except a few nightlights – so that I can see who dared to break in, that is… if they had the courage to bypass the security – that I had placed in my room. I walked over to the edge of my bed, and stared at the only spot left opened with a scowl.

"Move over, Kaoru-nii," I nudged to my brother, who merely gave me a smirk. Without any warning whatsoever, he grabbed my wrist and pulled me towards him, making me sprawl across his figure. "W-what are you doing!" I sputtered in surprise as I tried to get up, but he and Hikaru-nii grabbed my limbs, and placed me between the two of them.

"You're sleeping in the middle," they chimed with a laugh, and hugged me as if I was their pillow. I willed myself not to flinch, and scowled at their directions, to which they merely laughed some more.

"I'm not your pillow!" I exclaimed as I tried to get out of their grips; but in the end, I gave up with a grumble – seeing as how I could not move – and decided to try to sleep even though they were invading my personal bubble. Just this once, I will let them get away with this… seeing how they were sissies and all.

* * *

><p>I woke up still sandwiched between my brothers, although I was nearly falling off the bed and Kaoru-nii was sprawled on the floor with one of the blankets. I shook my head at the scene as I carefully got out of bed, eyeing at the clock to see that it was only a little over five o'clock. I readjusted the blankets on the two – one of my nice moments that they should not get used to – before I quietly walked over to the closet to grab my Academy's uniform, and then walked over to the bathroom for a quick shower.<p>

As soon as I finished drying and brushing my hair after my shower, I placed my hair brush down on the vanity table, glancing at my reflection in the mirror with a small smirk etching on the corner of my mouth, and wordlessly, I gathered my straightened hair into a high ponytail. I took out a pair of black onyx clip-on earrings, which were a pair of hidden cameras in disguise, and quickly put it on. I then put on my blue-gray colored contacts, blinking a few times to adjust to the change before I began applying the makeup.

Once I finished, I pulled out my other luggage from my walk-in closet, quickly entering the pin number to unlock the item, and then stared at the weapons neatly lying inside. Silently, I stood up from my position, and began dressing in the standard white and black Imperial Cavalier Academy uniform.

When I finished zipping up my skort, I strapped on a pair of gun and magazine holsters around my upper thighs, strategically hidden underneath the flap of my skort. I then put on my black trench coat over my white blouse, placing two fully-loaded guns inside the coat with four magazines in extra pockets before I moved on to put two more fully-loaded guns in my holsters with two extra magazines.

"It never hurt to have extras," I said to no one in particular as I put on my knee-high black socks. I let out a yawn as I put on my knee-high combat boots, making sure to securely tie my laces, and then moved on to hide a couple of daggers in my shoes.

I let out another yawn as I grabbed my cell phone and identification card, pocketing the two items, while I mentally tried to access what other items I had forgotten. "This is a perfect time for a siesta even though I just woke up," I muttered just as another yawn escaped from my mouth.

Wordlessly, I hid my luggage underneath my bed once more, and bid my Kumataro, Kumago, and my sleeping brothers a silent farewell before I walked out of the door. I glanced at my watch, noticing that it was nearing six o'clock, and hurried down the hallway.

'According to Jeanne, the 'show' starts at in forty minutes,' I said to myself, remembering the message I had seen when I was activating the house's security system. I stopped by the foyer, and grabbed a notepad and a pen to scribble a quick message of my whereabouts before I taped it on the wall near the dining room.

**x0x0x0x0x**

Kaoru let out a groan as he sat up from his position, wincing at the backache from sleeping on the floor – again. One of these days he was going to make sure that Hikaru felt the similar pain and agony of sleeping on the floor. He then blinked when he noticed the blanket draped around him, silently wondering how that came to be since he knew that everything he got kicked off the bed, the blanket stayed with Hikaru.

He shook his head, inwardly giving up on figuring out this mystery, and stood up while he stretched his limbs. Kaoru blinked in surprise when he noticed that Riku was missing, and silently concluded that she must be an early raiser like Tono. With that thought in mind, he dumped the blanket on his twin's face, and nudged Hikaru to wake up.

"Come on, we have to get ready for school," he added while prodding his older twin.

Kaoru watched as Hikaru slowly got up, grumbling under his breath about mornings and how it was too early. Nonetheless, the two made it back to their rooms, and proceeded to get ready for the day.

They walked out of their bedroom half an hour later, and headed towards the dining room (not noticing the note taped on the wall) whilst remarking about how it was too quiet before their topic of conversation stopped on their sister's whereabouts. They momentarily stopped by the living room when they heard noises coming from their television. It seemed one of the maids had forgotten to turn it off… again.

"—Breaking news: this is just in. The prestigious Ouran High School Academy has been bombed a few minutes ago. Sources say that a notorious group of criminals, nicknamed as 'Lady Killer', was responsible for the attack. We do not know why they had specifically chosen this school for their attack, or if this was a random act of terror. However, they were immediately caught by our local police department and a group of England's law enforcement in-training – the Imperial Guardians. It seemed that the Imperial Guardians had anticipated this would happen as they were well-prepared for the attack. Gunshots were exchanged from both parties when the criminal resisted arrest. One member of the 'Lady Killer' group was immediately killed in the midst of gunfire; and others were taken in for further questioning." the news anchor reported.

She paused for a couple of seconds to catch her breath before continuing, "We will bring you the latest updates as we get them. But for now, Chairman Suoh of Ouran High School Academy has stated that school will be closed until further notice as they repair the damages…Back to you in the studio."

"Kaoru, do you think this is related to what happened yesterday?" his twin inquired after a long silence.

"I wouldn't put it pass it, Hikaru," he responded as he looked over to his brother, and added, "It seemed Riku and her friends are aware of what's happening… after all, they're already at the crime scene."

"We really should find a way to stop her from doing that," Hikaru murmured with a sigh.

Kaoru nodded in agreement as he muttered, "Yeah…"

* * *

><p><strong>Note:<strong> Next chapter is going to be the last one.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer:** Standard disclaimer applies.

**Warning:** The story will mostly be written in first person point-of-view, and will contain mentions of depression, thoughts of suicide, and things within that category.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 11:<span>

Nekozawa readjusted his tie as he stood on a rooftop and pulled out his revolver from his jacket. He let out a yawn as he waited for his targets to show up, and looked to the other side of the rooftop on his left, noticing that Shiki and Rion looked just as bored and tired as he was feeling. Wordlessly, he checked his weapon to make sure it was fully loaded, and then leaned against the railing, waiting.

Last night, the Information Gathering Division and Communications Division had stumbled upon the call between the criminals. According to the call, since the criminals in the Lady Killer group had failed to assassinate Riku and her brothers, they were going to bomb the Ouran High School Academy in attempt to kill any student who had arrived early. It seemed like a miserable attempt to him; but nonetheless, they must be stopped.

Hence, it was the reason why he and Imperial Guardians, some of the A-Ranked students from various divisions, and some of the police officers were currently staking out in several different places. Nekozawa covered his mouth once again as he let out a yawn, inwardly grumbling that it was way too early, and looked over to his right where Riku was. She was lying on her stomach with her sniper rifle ready to fire at a target whilst occasionally yawning.

_"Everyone, there are four targets,"_ I heard one of the A-Ranked students informed via a headset. Almost immediately, I heard shuffling noises over the headset, and chuckled at the noises as everyone came to attention.

_"The targets have passed Point A,"_ another A-Ranked student stated, _"Do you want us to do anything, Rion?" _

_"For now, let them do as they please,"_ that was Rion's answer, which was followed by a muffled shuffling noise, _"We need some incriminating evidences against them; but make sure that they don't damage the school much." _

_"Understood,"_ the A-Ranked student responded solemnly.

"_The targets have passed Point B, and are in the process of installing bombs at Section 5,"_ another A-Ranked student reported.

_"As soon as they are out of sight, I want the Armory Division to disarm them as quickly as possible," _Rion instructed without missing a beat.

Nekozawa half-heartedly listened to the conversations coming from his headset, and looked over to Riku, who looked like she would rather be back at home sleeping even though there was a solemn expression on her face.

_"Rion, they're about to throw a bomb towards the main building. Do you want me to shoot it down?" _Riku spoke almost monotonously.

Instead of a quick response that Nekozawa was expecting, there was a slight pause that indicated some hesitancy. Finally, Rion stated, _"It seems they are going to be throwing more than one. Informa Division, I want you to take plenty of pictures for evidence of the first throw; Riku… I mean, Ren, shoot down the remaining ones as best as you can." _

_"Understood," _there was a chorus of voices and quiet sounds of shutter clicks.

_"Everyone, please take cover,"_ that was all the warning he received as he heard a decisive click that indicated that the safety had been unlocked. Within seconds, there was a loud boom that echoed throughout the neighborhood, and Nekozawa could have sworn that anyone within three miles radius had heard the noise.

"Damn! Someone is already here!" he heard a male voice cursed loudly over the noises of debris falling after the effect of the bomb. "Do you think they knew that this was merely a decoy?"

"Let's get out of here, man," another man declared as he turned around to hightail out of the premise.

_"Alright teams; capture and take them in for questioning,"_ Rion instructed smoothly. _"Find the two remaining others while you're at it."_

_"Yes sir!" _

Nekozawa pocketed his weapon in his jacket once again, and stood up from his spot, just as he heard, _"Ren, I would like you to return to your manor and check on your family. During the explosion, I managed to catch them saying that this is merely a decoy to distract you to come here while they eliminate your family,"_ from Jeanne.

_"I… see…"_ Riku trailed off blankly as she slung her sniper rifle over her shoulder, and looked at his direction, "Luca, can I borrow your motorcycle?"

"Sure," Nekozawa responded as he fished out the keys from his pocket, and tossed it over her direction. "Be careful."

**x0x0x0x0x**

The sound of screeching tires brought his attention, as well as the Host Club's, to the scene outside. Kaoru glanced over to his twin for a quick moment before they stood up from their seats and walked over to the foyer just as the front door slammed door. He blinked in surprised when he saw Riku, dressed in her white and black uniform, with a sniper rifle slung over her right shoulder. She was leaning against the doorframe whilst she tried to catch her breath.

"Oh good, you're…okay," she panted out with a relief sigh, and then looked around the room somewhat frantically, "Where's Mom?"

"She already left for work," Hikaru answered with confusion laced in his response. "What's going on, Riku? Where were you?"

"Yes, an explanation would be nice," Kyoya-senpai added with a cold smile, and continued, "What's this about Ouran Academy being bombed?"

Riku spared them a glance as she spoke to her headset, "Jeanne, it seems my Mom has already left for work. Can you trace her and see if she's okay, please? You should be able to know my codes easily. And can you inform Rion to send some troops over here once you're done over there? Thanks."

"Riku…?" Kaoru prodded with a frown when she ignored his twin's and Kyoya-senpai's questions.

"I left a message posted on the wall by the dining room. Anyways, there's no time to explain; we're being watched," she replied in a low tone as she brought her rifle to her eyelevel. In a matter of a couple of seconds, she disarmed the weapon as the bullets scattered on the floor, and left the rifle leaning against the wall nearby. "I can't protect all seven of you at once. Haninozuka-san and Morinozuka-san knows how to fight, right?"

"Ah," Mori-senpai responded as Honey-senpai tilted his head in puzzlement.

"I'll entrust you to ensure that no one is foolish enough to interfere, and cost them their lives," Riku answered as she re-tied her hair whilst her eyes subtly glanced around the room.

Wordlessly, she pulled out two short swords from underneath her uniform, and tossed the weapons towards Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai. It made him wonder how she was able to hide the weapons under her clothes without being uncomfortable. "Should the need arises, use them to protect yourselves and your friends. I want you guys to at least make out of this alive," she stated in a solemn tone.

Kaoru glanced at his sister, noticing worry flickering in her eyes before her gaze landed on his. It was then that he noticed how the color of her eyes was different. Nonetheless, he let out a small smile when she caught him staring at her; but instead of chiding him for staring, she merely gave a reassuring smile in return.

"I can't say the same for you," a voice spoke from behind Riku, who instantly had her emotion drained from her face. "Now, disarm yourself and put your hands up. If you decide to try something funny, I'm not afraid to blow up your brain, and kill your mother at the same time," the voice commanded.

Riku gave them a look that clearly said, 'Don't do anything' as she pulled out two guns from the gun holsters strapped around her thighs, and two more guns from her coat, dropping them on the ground. Her assaulter merely kicked them away across the room as his sister raised her arms up in an 'I surrender' gesture.

Her assaulter crackled and stated, "Who would have thought that the Queen is this obedient? If I had known, I would've tried this method first instead of attacking your school; although I have to say that was fun. Wouldn't you agree, Ren?"

"Hmm, so it was you, Asami Tanaka," Riku remarked as if her life was not in danger. She flicked another look towards his and the Host Club's direction telling them to remain in their spots. When they heard a distinctive click to indicate that the gun's safety had been unlock, Riku merely let out a smirk as if she was not afraid and said, "Shoot if you dare; but in return, I can't promise that you will still be alive when this is over."

"Please, I've already thoroughly researched you, Ren Kisaragi," Asami responded with a scoff as she slightly stepped out from behind his sister.

Kaoru nearly let out a gasp when he realized at the assaulter was the same maid that he and his siblings had fired days ago. In one hand, she was holding a gun, which was directed towards Riku's head, and in another hand, she was holding a dagger which was mere centimeters away from his sister's neck.

"You may be a skilled sniper; but your hand-to-hand combat is thoroughly lacking," she continued with a triumphant smirk. "That's why you were caught off-guard with Jack Marquise. I know your weakness, so don't even try to hide it. And do you really want to play with your mother's life?"

He shot an annoyed look towards Tamaki's teeth chattering self before he reverted his attention back to Riku, who – much to his surprise – looked calm in spite of being in a dangerous position. Kaoru grasped onto his twin's hand in an attempt to calm his nerves, and gave an anxious squeeze to Hikaru's nervous one.

In an instant, he felt the room temperature dramatically decreased as if someone had adjusted the dial and manually lowered the temperature. Kaoru bit back a startled gasp when his sister elbowed her assaulter, and grasped the gun in one swift movement. He and the Host Club gasped in shock when Asami plunged her dagger mercilessly at Riku in return.

"Riku!" he, his brother, and the rest of the Host Club cried out in alarm.

Kaoru did not know if his sister was hiding her pain, or if she was simply being foolishly brave, or if she truly did not felt anything by the attack, which probably is not the case seeing as she clenched her teeth when the dagger was brought down on her. For one, he was awed that her facial expression did not portray that she was hurt by the attack a few seconds later even though he and the others could see the blood trickling down on their marble flooring.

"Assaulting an Imperial Guardian?" Riku spoke in an amused tone as she pointed the gun back at Asami. It was as if she did not mind the fact that her right shoulder was injured and that she should not be moving that arm lest she worsened the injury. "That's another few years added to your sentencing," she added with a smirk.

"Don't make me laugh," Asami retorted as she took out a small device from her pocket, and sneered at Riku, who – much to his astonishment – remained unfazed. "With just a click here, your mother's death is guaranteed!"

"Well then, I'll just have to kill you before you do that, don't I?" his sister responded airily without moving her gun.

**x0x0x0x0x**

It would be a lie to say that my wound was not hurting like there was no tomorrow. It was an extremely difficult task to move around as if I was fine; but I could not show my weakness to this… murderer. I just had to hold on until backup arrives; otherwise, it would be my brothers and his friends who would suffer in my stead. I could not let that happened… after all, I had told Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii that I would not use them as human shields.

'Besides… dying doesn't sound so bad,' I added with an inward smirk while I aimed the gun towards the woman before me.

I was not afraid of her threats because I knew that if anything had happened to my parents, the Communicative Assistance team would immediately alert me seeing as I installed one of their security measures on my parents' belongings. Of course, I was worried about Mom and Dad's safety; but I would not let it show on my expression. This was one of the basics I learned when I first enrolled into the Academy.

I subtly glanced to where my guns had landed, and silently tried to calculate how I would be able to get my weapons as swiftly as possible. I did not want to leave any openings for my foe to give her a chance to hurt the Host Club. It was going to be tough to pull; but I think I would be able to do so… even with my injury, which was beginning to sting like there was no tomorrow. I had a feeling that I would, once again, be spending days – perhaps, even weeks – at the hospital when this is over. How fun is _that_…

'It'll all be over soon,' I tried to encourage myself.

In a swift movement, I kicked away the dagger from Asami's hand, and watched as it got embedded on our wall. Within that short timeframe, I dashed over to my guns, quickly putting it back on my holsters while I gestured to the Host Club to hide, just as I heard a distinctive sound of gunshots.

'Damn it, I got careless!' I chided inwardly while I whipped my head over to the direction of the sound. I had completely forgotten to ensure that my foe does not have any other weapons.

I painfully brought up my gun, pulling the trigger a few times so that my bullets would be able to counter hers. I probably should not be attacking or firing my weapon within the house, but I pushed that thought in the back of my mind. This was something I should not be thinking about at the moment.

A quiet hiss passed through my lips as I lowered my weapon, more mentally aware of my shoulder pain now… with added headaches that was throbbing my mind. I pushed those thoughts from my mind as best as I could, and watched as the bullets collided in the air, and now embedded on the wall.

"Kyo-chan!" I heard Haninozuka-san's startled cry.

I looked over to his direction and saw one of the bullets headed towards Ootori-san, who looked to be in the process of ducking behind one of our sofas. I really wanted to face palm at the scene, even though I did not have time to do such things, and pushed myself to rush towards him.

Everything was painful… especially my right shoulder blade where the stab wound was. I was used to deskwork, and shooting at targets from a safe distance for the past three years. This kind of fast-paced think-on-your-feet actions was not my specialty, and as Asami had mentioned earlier, hand-to-hand combat is my weakness… even though I tried not to show it to my foes.

'If I die from this, then so be it,' I concluded with an inward smirk.

I had no qualms about dying, really. It had been constantly on my mind since Seaford… just more so recently. Most of the times, I had hid it from my family, and my comrades because I did not want to alarm them that I was getting more and more suicidal. The more I thought about it, the more I was confused as to why I wanted to die… and why I did not want to live.

Nevertheless, I bit back a groan when I felt something sharp hitting me in between my shoulder blades just as I fell forward onto Ootori-san. It felt like a needle was poking at my back instead of a bullet. I would not be surprised if the bullet turned out to be a needle either.

"You can get off me anytime now," Ootori-san spoke from underneath me.

"Sorry," I murmured as I tried to stand up despite the blurriness of my vision.

I did not know what she had injected me with; but the world around me would not stop spinning… it was as if I was on that teacup ride all over again. I did not mind it though… if I was to die from this, then so be it. I am ready.

**x0x0x0x0x**

"Heh, you're really as weak as Jack had said," Asami commented with a laugh and a sneer.

Hikaru looked over to his sister, who was holding onto the back of the couch whilst her other hand was slowly massaging her temple. He was worried about her welfare, especially since she was stabbed and then got hit by that bullet-needle-thing, which she had already asked Kyoya-senpai to take out for her. He did not even know how she was still standing judging by the amount of blood pooling on their marble floor.

"Then you wouldn't mind if I went all out, do you?" Riku calmly responded with her eyes narrowed. She pocketed one of her guns, and twirled the other one in her right hand before she pointed its barrel towards Asami. "And you wouldn't mind if I kill you, right?" she added with a cold smirk that sent shivers down his spine.

"Like you can kill another human being," the former maid scoffed.

His sister did not say anything and merely twirled her gun once more before she pocketed the weapon. In matter of a couple seconds, she darted towards her opponent, and pushed herself off the floor with intent to kick Asami out of the house, literally. Her movement, despite being injured, was so fast that Hikaru would have missed it if he had blinked.

"Three years can change a person," Riku responded as she walked over to the door, pausing by the doorway to look over to their direction, "Stay here, and I mean it."

It was then that Hikaru had finally seen the exhaustion written on her expression, looking as if she was ready to collapse any moment. He did not know if it was his imagination because she looked perfectly fine in the next instant he saw her expression. He and the rest of the Host Club (except for Kyoya-senpai and Mori-senpai) were about to protest, and insist that they – or at the very least, Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai – are going to help her… when she threw back her black coat over to their direction.

His attention diverted from the bloodied black coat when he heard several gunshots rang out from outside. Hikaru looked over to his twin, who gave him a subtle nod, before standing up with the rest of the Host Club.

"We need to help Riku," Kaoru remarked with his lips turned into a tight line.

"Takashi and I could probably outnumber that woman," Honey-senpai commented with Riku's sword in his hand. Mori-senpai nodded in agreement, and they turned to run out of the room when a magic circle appeared out of nowhere.

Thin veils of smoke rose from the outer circle before the smoke blanketed the area like a thick fog. Tono screamed like a girl, yelling out "G-g-g-ghost!", when a blond head popped up from the magic circle and a few seconds later, Nekozawa-senpai 'materialized'.

"You can relax," he spoke with a smirk, but they were confused with what he was talking about… even though Kyoya-senpai and Mori-senpai did not show it on their expressions. "The backup is here, and the fight will be over soon," Nekozawa-senpai added as he pointed his finger outside to the source of the sirens wailing in the air.

"How did…" Hikaru began, and simply trailed off since he did not know how to phrase his inquiry about the magic circle.

Nekozawa-senpai merely grinned as he pulled out his gun and reloaded the magazine while he spoke, "We're not foolish enough to send out Riku without some sort of tracer on her. We learned our lesson with what happened to her last time; there is no need for a repeat of that. Besides, we heard Asami Tanaka's minions stating that the bombing of Ouran Academy was simply a decoy to lure Riku, and then kill Hikaru and Kaoru while her attention is diverted there."

'Well, that explained two things; but that doesn't explain how he appeared from that circle,' Hikaru concluded with a slight huff.

"In any case, it's better if you do not get involved," the Black Magic Club President stated as he pocketed his gun. "We have found that Asami Tanaka pretended to your maid in order to gather information on you two and your mother. She was planning to eliminate you three soon, but then Riku arrived before she could do so. That probably threw off her plans, more so when she was fired."

"But why would she plan to kill Hika-chan and Kao-chan?" Honey-senpai asked with a frown marring his usually cheerful expression.

"Because we captured her husband, Jack Marquise, and the Magistrate gave him a death penalty for his crimes," Nekozawa-senpai explained with a small sigh, and ran a hand through his hair. "An eye for an eye, I guess. We also found out that he was obsessed with Riku and wanted to brainwash her into becoming his underling because of her ability as a tactician, and that probably fueled her jealousy. Anyway, I've stalled you long enough that the battle should be over by now."

**x0x0x0x0x**

I let out a deep sigh of relief when Rion and the others quickly arrived to apprehend Asami, and dropped down to the ground. My right shoulder hurt immensely and I would not be surprised if I was unable to move for days to come. In addition, whatever I was injected with was taking an effect… my vision blurred to the point that I could only see blobs of color, and my headache was not helping me any either. I felt as if a hammer was pounding on my head.

'Ugh, kill me please,' I thought with a groan as I rubbed my eyes to readjust my vision.

The faint conversations around me only further amplified my headache, and I was about to tell my comrades to quiet down when a loud yell of, "Move out of the way, Riku!" interrupted me. I was about to question what they were talking about when a burning sensation shot through my chest, and darkness immediately filled my vision.

I did not think that my silent wish would have come true. Strangely enough, I was not rejoicing as I previously thought I would, but instead, my heart felt heavy with sadness and I did not know why.

* * *

><p>Three months… both Hikaru and Kaoru had been counting. It had been three months since they had seen Riku, who was immediately carted off in an ambulance after she was shot. They had been held back by Nekozawa-senpai, stating that they should not interfere with the Medical Division team's attempt to help her. However, that was their sister lying on that stretcher… and they were worried; after all, she was shot in the chest.<p>

When Nekozawa-senpai called later night to tell them that Riku's condition was stable, they did not even question how he had their phone number. The two were not even able to stop him or any other Imperial Guardians when they informed that Riku was going to be shipped back to London because the Ootori Medical Centre's best cardiologist specialist resided there.

Kaoru still could not get the image of Riku being shot down out of his mind, and judging by how quiet his twin has been for the past three months, he knew that Hikaru was in the same boat as him. Their mother engrossed herself more in her work ever since they had been told what had happened to Riku, and they have not even heard from their father since then.

News about the attack and the 'death' of Ren Kisaragi circulated for weeks immediately after the battle. The facts about the Jack Marquise case and the 'Lady Killer' case were published a couple of days after the attack. He and Hikaru – perhaps, everyone else – were shocked to read about the facts that someone was cruel and twisted enough to copy Jack the Ripper's methods in this day and age.

The damages on the Ouran Academy, on the other hand, were fixed in the same week it was bombed, and they were back to school once the repairs were completed as if nothing had happened.

**x0x0x0x0x**

"I wonder how she's doing," Hikaru commented after their Host Club activities were over for the day. He inwardly counted that it had been three months and one week.

"You mean, Riku-chan?" Honey-senpai asked as he bounced over to him and his twin. "We haven't heard from her since that day, huh? Kyo-chan, do you know anything?"

The last phrase was directed towards Kyoya-senpai, who merely glanced up from his notebook and readjusted his glasses. "Now, why would you think that I would know anything?"

"Because Riku is in your family hospital," he and Hikaru responded in unison, piercing their gaze onto the Shadow King.

"My family hospital _in London_," Kyoya-senpai added as he closed his notebook, and looked at them as if silently daring to correct him. "But from what I've been told, she is in therapy and there is a chance that she will be transferred back here once she is finished."

"Therapy?" Tono echoed in confusion.

Haruhi glanced over to their direction with a tray of teacups in her hands, and said in a deadpanned tone, "It's probably because she was shot at. There are bounds to be some trauma from it," before she walked off to the kitchen area.

The door to Black Magic Club creaked open, startling Tono to the point that the blond hid behind the red velvet couch, and a few seconds later, Nekozawa-senpai walked into the room with his cloak and wig in its place. No one said a word as they watched the cloaked figure walked across the room until he was by the doorway to exit the Third Music Room.

"Nekozawa-senpai, do you know what happened to Riku since that day?" Kaoru spoke up.

The mentioned person stopped in his mid-action of grabbing the door handle, and then turned around to face the group as his hood fell backward. His black wig fell over his eyes, which glanced over to the Host Club in a nonchalant manner. "Riku slipped into coma after they extracted the bullet and patched her up. Luckily, it missed her vital organs by mere centimeters so it wasn't life-threatening as it would have been."

"Coma?" Hikaru echoed in shock, silently wondering why neither he nor Kaoru were informed about this.

"Don't worry; she came to three weeks ago," Nekozawa-senpai responded with a wave of his hand, and added, "She's been having therapy with Ayame-sensei for her depression and the post-trauma."

"Then we should go see her!" Kaoru replied as he stood up from his seat.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," the Black Magic Club President spoke with a soft sigh as he ran a hand through his hair. "The Headmaster is planning to send her back here once her therapy sessions have been completed. He's hoping that by giving her a chance to live like a normal person, she can overcome her depression; but until then, Riku is put on reserve."

Kaoru looked over to his twin, who was mirroring his shocked expression, and then shifted his attention to Nekozawa-senpai. "But Riku didn't even look like she has depression while she was with us," he pointed out as he recalled the times he and his twin spent with their sister.

"And she looked happy when we were at the amusement park," Honey-senpai added.

Nekozawa-senpai simply smirked at the statements and responded with a, "Ah, that may be; however, we found out that Riku has been battling with depression for a while now. Well… not so much depression but being suicidal. She became a master at hiding her emotions – especially the darker side of emotions so none of us knew about it. Ayame-sensei only found out a couple of weeks ago that the sole reason Riku enrolled in the Imperial Cavalier Academy because of the dangerous missions. She wanted to see how long it would take her to die in one of the missions. That's probably the reason why she took on most of the dangerous missions herself."

"You mean to tell us that you let her take them?" Hikaru started with a frown and then looked over to his direction, "Didn't you guys find it remotely suspicious about why she would take on those dangerous missions? Don't tell me you didn't know about it until now."

"That is rather surprising seeing as she's your teammate," Kyoya-senpai added without looking up from writing in his notebook.

"I won't try to give excuses seeing as I know that you would not accept them; but we're not required to tell each other for our reason for enrolling into the Academy. There wasn't a need to; besides, it's normal for the S-Ranked students to undertake dangerous missions because we are a part of the law enforcements, and we need to build up our field experiences as much as we can," the Black Magic Club President responded coolly, and added as an afterthought, "And by the way, if you care to know, one of my reasons is because my family owns a gun manufacturing company, which supplies the Academy and its students with firearms. Anyways, Riku should be arriving here in a couple of days if everything goes according to the Headmaster's plan. If you have any questions, you can ask her; I'm running late as it is."

With that, Nekozawa-senpai left the club room without so much as a farewell. Silence blanketed the room as he tried to absorb what the Imperial Cavalier had just said. For one, he was shocked to hear that his sister was in coma; but he was glad to hear that she was out of it. Secondly, he was surprised by the news that she was suicidal… he could not help but wonder if it had to do with what he and his twin had done to her during their childhood… or if it was because of what happened in Seaford.

* * *

><p>I readjusted my sky-blue colored newsboy hat, and thanked the taxi driver as he got my luggage out of its trunk. I paid him with my newly exchanged money with some tip before I dragged my luggage to the double gates. I tugged at my now black hair, which was slightly curled and done in pigtails, and pressed the intercom system.<p>

Since the plan to erase 'Ren Kisaragi' from the world has been complete, and the 'Lady Killer' case has been put to rest, I decided to go with a whole new look. It would also give me some time to figure who my next alias should be, especially now with my black hair – which I dyed it on a whim when I was released from the hospital.

As I waited for someone to unlock the gates, I let out a sigh when I realized my brothers would be home, and they would want answers. I was unsure if I wanted to let them know about what had happened in the last thirteen weeks. Umehito had called a couple of days ago to tell me that he had told them about my conditions. I did not know whether to thank him for making my job easier, or to smack him for telling them without my permission. In the end, I decided to do neither since I figured it is a bit late to hide these facts from my family, especially since Umehito had already spilled the beans via Ayame-sensei.

The gates opened momentarily later once a maid had confirmed my identity, and I wordlessly walked towards the entrance door. I knocked on the door a few times while I let out a wide yawn, already feeling tired by time change.

"Welcome back, Riku-sama," one of the maids greeted with a bow.

"Thanks," I responded with a nod as I walked into the house, and added, "If it's not too much trouble, can you bring my luggage to my room? Thank you."

"Understood," the maid replied with another bow.

I headed towards the living room where I heard the voices coming from, and paused by the doorway when I noticed my brothers sitting together with Kumago as they lazily watched the television. I gave a slight cough to capture their attention, and nearly smiled in amusement when Hikaru-nii and Kaoru-nii looked over their shoulders, looking startled by the sudden noise and stood up.

"Riku! You're back!"

**x0x0x0x0x**

"Yeah," Riku responded as her eyes sparkled when her gaze landed on him and Hikaru. The two of them stared at her, silently wondering what she was going to do, but his eyes widened in surprised when she ran towards them whilst yelling out, "I miss you~!" with her arms spread out.

Kaoru looked over to his twin, who held an equally surprised expression, but nonetheless, they mirrored her action as they cried out, "We missed you too~" and waited for her to hug them. A soft breeze passed by them, ruffling their attires for a moment, when they realized that Riku had run passed them.

"Kumago-chan," Riku added as she hugged her oversized bear that was sitting on the sofa behind them. "Did you miss me like I missed you? These three months were lonely with you."

Kaoru resisted the urge to face palm at his sister's action, inwardly feeling very foolish to have even though that Riku was going to hug him. He looked over to Hikaru, who looked peeved that neither of them were on top of Riku's list… instead, it was _that_ bear. He then shifted his glance towards Kumago, and for a moment, Kaoru could have sworn that the bear was smirking at him.

He and his brother stared at the scene, half of him wanted to croon at how cute Riku was being while the other half of him wanted to strangle the bear for getting the attention _they_ were supposed to get. No, he was not jealous of a stuffed animal… Definitely not… In fact, he did not even know why they had decided to complain to that bear about Riku. Well, it somewhat reminded them of Riku; but they were not going to tell her that. That would simply be weird… not to mention, awkward.

"Are you alright?" Kaoru spoke with a small smile and glared at the oversized bear when Riku was not looking. "We heard what happened from Nekozawa-senpai. We wanted to be with you for support, but he wouldn't let us."

"Why didn't you say anything that you were having suicidal thoughts?" Hikaru added with a frown as he took a step forward. "Did you think we wouldn't care?"

"Luca said that? Wow, that must mean I've been hiding it better than I thought," Riku stated in an amused tone without letting go off Kumago from her hug. She picked up the bear and took a seat in its spot, placing the giant stuffed animal on her lap as she continued to hug it.

"Wait, who is Luca? And does it have to do with what we did to you when you were young?" Kaoru could not help but ask.

His sister simply looked over to him before she responded with a, "Umehito's alias name is Luca."

A moment of silence passed by the three with Riku not saying anything else, making them assume that what they had done had indeed affected her. Wordlessly, he took a seat on her left while Hikaru sat on her right.

"You know, we're very sorry about it…" Kaoru decided to cut the silence, and grabbed her left hand in his with baited breath. He inwardly sighed in relief when Riku did not shake off his grasp.

"I can't say I completely forgive you for all that you've done," she began as her right hand clenched on Kumago's right paw. With a soft sigh, she stood up from her seat, leaving the bear in her seat as she walked towards a window. As she leaned against the wall next to it, she continued, "But what you have done has shaped me into the person I've become today. I don't know if I should thank you for it because frankly speaking, I never did like me. There were many times where I should have died given the dangerous situations I've been in; but I didn't. It makes me wonder just for what purpose I'm hanging onto this thing called 'life'."

He sat there in stunned shock, not knowing what to say, and realized just how little they knew about Riku. He had thought that they had become a little closer now that he knew about her Cavalier life; but he now realized that it was foolish of him to think so. After all, the Riku before them was very different from the one at the amusement park with him and Hikaru.

Kaoru glanced at his brother with a frown and a mixed feeling about what they had just heard. He did know what to say to make her think otherwise; but he was disheartened by the fact that she sounded as if she has given up on living. "Riku…" he started, trying to say something… anything to make her realize that there is a purpose to her life. In the end, he did not know how he was going to say that, and simply bowed his head in dejection.

"We're really sorry," Hikaru continued with his head bowed.

Riku merely casted a glance towards their direction as if she had acknowledged their apology, and stated, "Sorry is a big word. You left me to dance with death… you isolated me… and at the same time, you killed me."

Kaoru gulped at the last phrase, trying to push down an unsettling feeling bubbling in his chest, and weakly said, "Wow, Riku; you come up with the most dramatic lines. You should write a book and called it, 'Dramatic Quotes by Riku Lucille'."

"You dork, I'm trying to be serious here," she responded as she grabbed a throw pillow placed by the window sill, and threw it towards their direction.

He nearly forgot about her precision skill, and the fact that she could turn a pillow in a deathly weapon until it smacked him right in the face. Silence filled the room despite the fact that Kaoru felt his twin's astonished stare from next to him while the pillow slowly peeled off from his face. Wordlessly, he grabbed the pillow and threw a mischievous smirk towards his sister's direction.

"You're too young to be that serious," Kaoru retorted as he threw the pillow towards her direction, missing her by a couple of feet when she dodged. "You should still have fun while you're young."

"The way you said it made it sound as if you're an old man, Kaoru," Hikaru stated as he grabbed a pillow from the couch and smacked it against his twin for saying such things.

Kaoru sputtered his protest that he was merely trying to look out for Riku, but instead he was interrupted by a laughter coming from across the room. He and Hikaru simply stared as they watched her laugh, not knowing what else to do but stare. It felt weird – a good weird – that their sister seemed that lax around them now, and does not have her guard up as she had been three months ago. Nevertheless, watching the scene before him made Kaoru realized just how left out he and his twin were from Riku's life.

'Man, I feel like an old man thinking like that,' he sighed inwardly, and nearly fell off his seat when he felt some weight on his back.

"I'll be here until the Headmaster deemed me fit to return to the Academy. Until then you can think of it as an opportunity to prove yourselves, because that one-time with the amusement park wasn't enough to completely enough for me to forgive you just yet," Riku spoke from behind him with amusement lacing in her tone.

"Riku… you mean…" his twin began in a surprised tone while Kaoru silently noted how his brother's eyes glinted with hope.

"I haven't banned your existence in my life, right? Besides, you two aren't as bad as I originally thought," she answered.

Even though Kaoru did not turn around to face Riku, he could feel a smirk underlying her statement. There was also an unspoken phrase of, '_That means there is still hope for you two,'_ that lingered in the air.

**Fin.**

* * *

><p><strong>Note: <strong>I hope the ending was acceptable.

Many thanks to those who read, reviewed, alerted, and/or favorite-ed. Of course, to my silent readers as well. Thanks for following this story to the end. **  
><strong>


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